THE AWARD-WINNING ANIME POWERHOUSE HAS BEEN DELIGHTING AUDIENCES FOR FOUR DECADES WITH ITS MASTERFUL BLEND OF FANTASY AND REALISM
By Isaac Garza
The story of Studio Ghibli, one of the world’s most influential and celebrated anime studios, begins before its foundation with Hayao Miyazaki’s Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. The postapocalyptic sci-fi adventure film was released in Japan in the spring of 1984 and has since become widely regarded as one of the greatest animated movies ever made. Buoyed by the film’s success, Miyazaki, along with longtime collaborator Isao Takahata and producer Toshio Suzuki, established Studio Ghibli the following year. An aviation enthusiast, Miyazaki took the studio’s name from the Italian reconnaissance plane the Caproni Ca.309 Ghibli. And much like its namesake aircraft, the studio has been flying high ever since, from the release of its first official film, 1986’s Castle in the Sky, to its light-hearted flagship production, My Neighbor Totoro, and the tragic yet unforgettable Grave of the Fireflies.
This ‘Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind’ production cel setup is available in Heritage’s March 22-24 The Art of Anime Vol. VI. While the movie was made a year prior to Studio Ghibli’s founding, it is widely considered the first entry of the Ghibli canon.
In honor of the beloved studio’s 40th anniversary, Heritage Auctions’ March 22-24 The Art of Anime Vol. VI will feature more than 60 lots showcasing Studio Ghibli’s remarkable history. The wide-ranging selection includes production cels from Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Castle in the Sky, and other timeless hits such as Princess Mononoke, Porco Rosso, and Kiki’s Delivery Service, as well as limited-edition pieces featuring images of the studio’s most emblematic characters.
Below, we’ve rounded up just a few of the Studio Ghibli highlights from Heritage’s upcoming auction. So keep reading – then mark your calendars, set your alarms, and don’t let the Catbus leave without you!
Castle in the Sky Sheeta Production Cel, 1986
For four decades, Studio Ghibli has been delivering animated masterpieces without fail, as evidenced by the recent success of 2023’s The Boy and the Heron. This tradition began with the release of the film that inaugurated the studio, Miyazaki’s Castle in the Sky. The movie’s endearing female protagonist, Sheeta, is the star of this production cel that brings us back to the studio’s early days and showcases the style that makes Ghibli movies immediately recognizable.
My Neighbor Totoro Catbus Production Cel, 1988
A Ghibli auction wouldn’t be complete without the studio’s most emblematic title, My Neighbor Totoro. Considered by many one of the best animated movies, this film delivered the unique magic for which the studio is famous. Among its many whimsical characters, Catbus stands out as a fan favorite. And even if you haven’t watched the film, this stupendous full-figure picture of the transportation feline will definitely capture your attention.
Grave of the Fireflies Seita and Setsuko Production Cel with Production Background, 1988
Released on the same day as My Neighbor Totoro, Grave of the Fireflies, which tells the heartbreaking tale of two siblings experiencing the last months of World War II, showcases the great range of Ghibli’s storytelling capabilities especially in contrast to its sister production. This cel of the bruised Seita holding his little sister is a prime example of the film’s strong emotive quality, as it surely will remind anyone who has seen the moving tour de force.
Kiki’s Delivery Service Kiki Production Cel Setup with Key Master Background, 1989
Kiki’s Delivery Service could be summarized as both a movie about a witch tasked with completing her training and about a girl striving to find herself and her role in the world. One of the most marvelous aspects of the film is that the fantastic and the mundane are depicted with equal wondrousness. During the movie, we see Kiki helping a woman prepare a herring pie and every step of the process – from the gathering of the wood for the oven, to the waiting time for the pie to bake, to Kiki carefully retrieving the finished dish from the oven – and each scene is handled with the same extraordinary magic as scenes of her flying atop her broom. This cel of Kiki reaching for the finished pie is more than enough to put you under Ghibli’s spell.
Porco Rosso Porco Production Cel Setup with Production Background, 1992
Miyazaki’s love of aviation is perhaps best exhibited in his 1992 movie Porco Rosso. Based on the director’s wonderful 15-page manga The Age of the Flying Boat, this movie was initially conceived as an animated short for Japan Airlines to be shown during flights. Telling the exciting story of an unconventional hero, an ace pilot-turned-pig due to a curse set in between World Wars, the movie presents some of the most remarkable aerial scenes in animated history. What better way to represent this film in the auction than with a stupendous portrait of our protagonist in traditional pilot attire?
Princess Mononoke San, Ashitaka, Lady Eboshi and Town Ladies Production Cel, 1997
Princess Mononoke is a fascinating transitional point in Miyazaki’s career. It stands at the intersection between traditional and digital animation, as it was his last film to use cels and the first to employ digital tools. Interestingly, at the film’s center we also see the clashing of old and new as it is represented in the conflict between Lady Eboshi’s ideals of progress through industrialization and San’s relentless fight to defend nature. This cel of Ashitaka holding San and Lady Eboshi is a remnant of a bygone animation era and reminds us of the two opposing forces at the center of this story.
Spirited Away Haku and Chihiro Limited Edition Cel, 2003
Spirited Away marked an important milestone for Ghibli and the entire anime industry, as it became the first Japanese animation film to earn an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Commemorating such a momentous achievement, Studio Ghibli produced this rare limited-edition cel. Since the film also marked Miyazaki’s embrace of digital techniques for its production, this piece also carries nostalgia for production cels as none were used to create the movie.
ISAAC GARZA is an Animation Art cataloger at Heritage Auctions.