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Princess Mononoke (1997)
Princess Mononoke is a 1997 Japanese animated historical fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Set in the Muromachi period of Japanese history, the film follows Ashitaka, a young Emishi prince who journeys west to cure his cursed arm and becomes embroiled in the conflict between the forest of the gods and a nearby town, as well as the feud between Lady Eboshi, the town's leader, and San, a human girl…
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki · Shot by Atsushi Okui · Cut by Hayao Miyazaki, Takeshi Seyama · Music by Joe Hisaishi · Ratio 1.85:1 · 128 min
How it was made
- The budget grew to ¥2.35 billion, more than double that of any previous Studio Ghibli film; Miyazaki said of the cost, 'I don't care if the studio goes bankrupt.'
- The finished film used approximately 144,000 cels, 80,000 of them key animation frames, more than any other Ghibli production, and Miyazaki is estimated to have drawn or retouched nearly 80,000 of them himself.
- Miyazaki assigned five art directors to the film, each responsible for a different aspect, such as daylight scenes versus nighttime ones, an unprecedented division of labour for the studio.
- Miyazaki storyboarded the film the way he worked on serialized manga, drawing the plot as he went; the final boards were not completed until January 1997, less than five months before release.
- Composer Joe Hisaishi first produced an 'image album' of demos and sketches with Miyazaki and producer Suzuki, which was then developed into the final score performed by the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra.
Behind the scenes
Elsewhere
More by Hayao Miyazaki
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