Studio Ghibli explores the whimsical world of cats
For fans of Japanese animation, Studio Ghibli is the equivalent of Pixar Studios for American audiences.
For decades, the artists, writers, and directors at Studio Ghibli have made some of the best—and more creative—anime films in the world. And audiences around the world have embraced the unique look and storytelling of this very Japanese art form.
This Sunday and Monday, you can experience of the most charming and magical anime adventures in the past two decades with the big-screen showing of director Hiroyuki Morita’s The Cat Returns.
The plot is both simple and whimsical: after helping a cat, a young girl finds herself involuntarily engaged to a cat prince in a magical world where her only hope of freedom lies with a dapper cat statuette come to life.
The film actually came about when Studio Ghibli received a proposal from a Japanese theme park to make a twenty minute animation starring cats. However, once studio head Toshio Suzuki saw Morita’s storyboards, especially his depiction of the main cat character of Haru, he gave the director the greenlight to become a full feature.
If you love anime or cats (or both), come out to East Ride 18 and Hamilton Place 8 this Sunday at 12:55 p.m. or Monday at 7 p.m. for a magical experience.