Studio Ghibli

Japanese film studio

Written byPatricia Bauer

Fact-checked byThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Miyazaki Hayao, 2008.

Date:: 1985 - present

Headquarters:: Tokyo

Areas Of Involvement:: film; Animation

Studio Ghibli is an acclaimed Japanese animation film studio that was founded in 1985 by animators and directors Miyazaki Hayao and Takahata Isao and producer Suzuki Toshio. Studio Ghibli is known for the high quality of its filmmaking and its artistry. Its feature films have won both critical and popular praise and have influenced other animation studios. The headquarters are in Tokyo.

Founding and early films

Animated scene from My Neighbor Totoro showing the Catbus, Totoro, and a young girl standing together on a forested hill at dusk.

The Cat Bus in Tonari no Totoro (1988; My Neighbor Totoro), directed by Miyazaki Hayao.

Animated scene from My Neighbor Totoro showing Satsuki and Mei standing under a red umbrella at a bus stop in the rain, with Totoro beside them holding a leaf on his head.

(From left) Satsuki and Totoro in Tonari no Totoro (1988; My Neighbor Totoro), directed by Miyazaki Hayao.

Before founding Studio Ghibli, Miyazaki directed Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979), his first feature film. In 1984, he made his second, Kaze no tani no Naushika (Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind), which was based on his own popular manga strip. The next year Miyazaki, Takahata, and Suzuki established Studio Ghibli. The first official Studio Ghibli release was Tenkū no shiro Rapyuta (1986; Castle in the Sky). Most of the films produced by Studio Ghibli were written and directed by Miyazaki and include, in addition to the aforementioned, Tonari no Totoro (1988; My Neighbor Totoro), Majo no takkyūbin (1989; Kiki’s Delivery Service), and Kurenai no buta (1992; Porco Rosso).

International success and later works

San, wearing a fur cape and red markings, rides a large white wolf in a forest scene from the animated film Princess Mononoke, directed by Hayao Miyazaki.

A scene from Mononoke-hime (1997; Princess Mononoke), directed by Miyazaki Hayao.

After Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind was badly edited for release in the United States under the name Warriors of the Wind (1986), Miyazaki forbid his films to be released in the West for many years. In 1996, however, a deal was reached to allow Walt Disney Studios to distribute Studio Ghibli’s movies, with the caveat that no film editing was to take place. The following year Studio Ghibli issued Miyazaki’s blockbuster hit Mononoke-hime (Princess Mononoke).

Animated scene from Spirited Away showing Chihiro, No-Face, and Yubaba sitting at a table with tea and desserts in a warmly lit room.

Chihiro seated between No-Face (left) and Yubaba in the film Spirited Away (2001).

Animated scene from Spirited Away showing the character Chihiro standing beside Kamaji, who is working with multiple arms at a cluttered workstation.

Kamaji (left) and Chihiro in Spirited Away (2001).

Animated scene from Spirited Away showing Chihiro facing the masked spirit No-Face in front of a group of frog-like workers inside a brightly decorated bathhouse.

No-Face (left) and Chihiro in the film Spirited Away (2001).

Animated scene from Ponyo directed by Hayao Miyazaki, showing Ponyo, a goldfish with a human face and red hair, swimming underwater with many smaller Ponyos and large blue sea creatures.

A scene from the film Gake no ue no Ponyo (2008; Ponyo), directed by Miyazaki Hayao.

Animated still from Ponyo by Hayao Miyazaki showing Ponyo, a young girl with red hair and a pink dress, joyfully running atop large, stylized ocean waves during a storm.

Still from the film Gake no ue no Ponyo (Ponyo), written and edited by Miyazaki Hayao.

Learn more about Studio Ghibli and how animator Miyazaki Hayao uses color.

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The studio’s best-known movie, Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001; Spirited Away), won several awards, notably the Golden Bear at the 2002 Berlin International Film Festival and the 2003 Academy Award for best animated feature. Later films included Hauru no ugoku shiro (2004; Howl’s Moving Castle), Gake no ue no Ponyo (2008; Ponyo), Kaze tachinu (2013; The Wind Rises), and Kaguyahime no monogatari (2013; The Tale of the Princess Kaguya).

In 2001, the Miyazaki-designed Ghibli Museum opened in Mitaka, Japan. Its attractions included exhibits about animation and original short films from Studio Ghibli.

Studio Ghibli and AI-generated art

Studio Ghibli became part of the debate about artificial intelligence (AI) and creative ownership in March 2025 when OpenAI, an American AI research organization, released an image generator capable of mimicking the studio’s signature style. Users quickly began posting Ghibli-inspired images on social media—some playful, others disturbing. Although many fans found the tool nostalgic, critics, including artists, raised concerns about unauthorized imitation and the future of human creativity. Miyazaki, long critical of AI in art, had previously called it “an insult to life itself,” a sentiment that resurfaced during the controversy.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Patricia Bauer