Talk:Hayao Miyazaki

Citations needed?

Suppressed the overzealous tags about lack of sources and references. All the references to Miyazaki's box office success are common knowledge. Moreover, they can be found in the article dealing with the movie. Dilane 06:33, 3 January 2007 (UTC)

hi, I am sorry about that. I was just trying to get things in shape and make it sourced for people that may not know nothing about Miyazaki. I think I did go a little over board... but I just want to bring it to attention that the article does not have many sources at the moment. Alus 06:37, 3 January 2007 (UTC)

That's not really what fact tags are for. Citations are simply not needed for things that can be plainly seen in the films, or that are common knowledge, such as box office figures. Many of the facts in the biography section come from Helen McCarthy's book, which is cited. There's not a wealth of reliable English-language information about Hayao Miyazaki, and McCarthy's book is an invaluable resource. It's not the quantity of references that make an article reliable, it's the quality of the references themselves. Comme le Lapin 18:40, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

Animator's animator?

I did a bit of editing and extracted the quote from Nareek below to effectivelly correct this statement. Animator's animator is not only a bit condescending but also incorrect in the case of Miyazaki. Terms like musician's musician, author's author expresses the notion of a "cult" figure influencing a lot of artists but pretty much unknown outside the artist circle. Plainly (i know that it takes John Lassiter to introduce Miyazaki movies in the Disney distribution)Miyazaki is not a cult figure. So I suppressed the reference in the introduction, created a sub section and put it before trivia. Obviously this can be vastly improved.

.... Dilane 02september2006...

"::Speaking of which, isn't it a little odd that this article starts out noting that Miyazaki has been compared to a number of obscure (though no doubt wonderful) animators? It's kind of like saying "Marlon Brando, who is thought to be in the same league with [name of some Ruritanian actor no one's heard of]..."

No offense to the fans of these guys, I'm sure they're great. It just seems a little strange to be using them as a gauge of the talent of someone as famous and acclaimed as Miyazaki" Nareek 20:22, 9 August 2006 (UTC)

Talk archives

Archives can be found here: 1

Television

His films are shown pretty often with english subtitles on Turner Classic Movies, upcoming showings can be found at [1].

ghibli founding

It is mentioned studio ghibli was co-founded with takahata, it was but it was also founded along with toshio suzuki the current chief producer and president of ghibli —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Discordance (talk • contribs) .

Picture

Does anyone want to see a real photograph of Miyazaki being used for this article instead? Shawnc 07:18, 22 February 2006 (UTC)

Yes please! Why is a personal drawing being used to represent an actual human being? There must be tons of pictures available that comply with fair use. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 222.154.149.130 (talk • contribs) .

I dunno--there's something kind of appropriate about using a cartoon to represent an animator. Though there's plenty of room in the article for another image--I was thinking of moving down some of the movie shots into the Theme section. Nareek 06:06, 23 February 2006 (UTC)

Is this cartoon a self-portrait by Miyazaki? If so, I think it's appropriate to keep it, as it would illustrate both the man and his art simultaneously. However, if this is the case, the caption should be changed to reflect it. If it's not a self-portrait, I would recommend substituting a good photograph. Docether 14:34, 23 February 2006 (UTC)

That portrait is by User:Tarnas.

Anyone likes any of the following pictures?

[2] [3] [4][5] [6]

Shawnc 00:40, 2 March 2006 (UTC)

Either #2 or #3 would be great.--Andrewjnyc 20:52, 5 March 2006 (UTC)

Definitely Number 1 --Apoc100 19:28, 9 August 2006 (UTC)

I think #3. #1 I think would need to be shrunk and then it would not be so good. #2 and #4 seem to have technical problems. #5 is a little severe. Nareek 20:25, 9 August 2006 (UTC)

2 looks great. I do like the cartoon portrait and if possible i think it should be kept somewhere in the article but the infobox should definately have a photo 88.107.24.251 18:51, 12 October 2006 (UTC)

Image 1 is excellent. Please add it to the infobox. It shows Miyazaki San as he looks now (or recently) and it's of a high quality. I think it would be a really nice addition. Comme le Lapin 20:23, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

Oscar template

Moving it down seems like a good idea to me. Nareek 16:35, 7 March 2006 (UTC)

Yeah, I was trying to figure out a good place for it the other day, but couldn't think of one so I just left it where it was. Looks good. (^_^) --日本穣 22:24, 7 March 2006 (UTC)

Information about his personality and public persona

I'd like to add some information about Miyazaki's personality and public persona, but I'm not sure where it would fit on the page. For example : he very rarely grants interviews, and is well-known to be an "all work, no play" kind of guy. To me, these are interesting facts that illuminate (or perhaps offset) his "personality" as expressed through his films. Any thoughts on how to best include this info? Docether 18:05, 20 April 2006 (UTC)

I don't think it would be fair to characterize him as "all work, no play." He does seem to work long hours and drive his staff to do the same, but he also stresses the importance of real-life experience as the basis for doing animation--you can see him in the extras for Spirited Away being mildly exasperated with his staff because none of them know what it's like to take care of a dog. You can also see him cooking ramen for his staff--he's obviously enjoying himself.

To answer your question, I think you want to read what people who know Miyazaki have said about him and quote from their reports. Nareek 16:15, 21 April 2006 (UTC)

As best I can tell, however, Miyazaki works virtually all the time -- this article says "away from the limelight this white-haired little professor leads a monastic existence (all work, no play, TV or internet)." However, even if he does work long hours, as you point out, he seems to incorporate play in his work (and perhaps views his work as play, as some artists do). This seems to fit well with the common perception of his character -- he certainly doesn't appear to be a somber drudge. ;)

In any case, care to suggest any other resources for fleshing out this part of the article? The Guardian article I linked to above takes pains to point out that he rarely gives interviews, so this will mostly be from third party observation of his habits. Docether 17:52, 21 April 2006 (UTC)

His son's blog on Nausicaa.net talks a bit about Miyazaki as a father. --日本穣 Nihonjoe 19:23, 21 April 2006 (UTC)

Best Animator of all times

In IMDB's ranking of best animation films Mr Miyazaki stands out well ahead of Walt Disney. Besides the animation, the stories he tells are so enthralling and entertaining that I would be very surprised if they dont appear at the top of any film ranking.

¿Can this be mentioned? In my case he has become a cult figure along with names such as Kurosawa, Hitchcok, Ridley Scot, Ingmar Bergman or Billy Wilder.Cgonzalezdelhoyo 20:17, 28 May 2006 (UTC)

He is without a doubt the best animator of all times. --Yancyfry jr

I think he is most certainly the finest animator (and one of the greatest storytellers) in history. But I don't think this opinion should be included in the article, because as much as I believe it, it's still a point of view. Comme le Lapin 20:26, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

Rumours of stroke

Rumours have been circulating LiveJournal and possibly other places to the effect that Miyazaki died of a stroke on July 1. This appears to be untrue[7]. Not sure if this is worth incorporating into the article, but since several people came to this article looking to see whether the rumours were true, I thought I'd note it here, because the correction never travels as fast as the original story. --Calair 22:32, 3 July 2006 (UTC)

Flying Machines

Just a minor point, but I would like to see some mention of Miyazaki's love for flying machines in particular and flight in general. It's not a feature of every film, but extravagent flying machines are featured in Kiki, Porco Rosso, Cagliostro, Laputa, Nausicaa, Howl (and probably a few more).Leeborkman 05:19, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

I agree. There's a flying section in almost all of his films. Also, something could be mentioned about how his father ran an avionics company (I think), leading to this love of flight and flying machines. davekeeling 20:37, 28 January 2007 (UTC)

Marxist

I've reinstated the marxist comment with a source, Ex-Nintendo Employee. If you object to that source, I will quickly find another. Finite 20:06, 15 September 2006 (UTC)

It's clear that Miyazaki no longer identifies as a Marxist, yet I think that the present edit is misleading, particularly to an American reader. My sense is that Miyazaki rejects Marxism because of its very un-Miyazakian identification of good guys and bad guys--not because he dismisses concerns about the negative effects of capitalism. His critique of capitalism is if anything clearer in his "post" Marxist films, like Princess Mononoke (with the iron factory) and Spirited Away (with the bathhouse in general, but particularly with No Face).

I guess what I'm asking is--does anyone have a better cite for Miyazaki's current politics that's more specific than "rejecting Marxism"? Nareek 21:44, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

Marxist schmarxist. The source about the marxist influence in his work doesn't actually give any substance tot he passage in the wiki. "Once an active Marxist and a vocal figure in labor unions, he has allowed his political alliances to influence how his protagonists are portrayed (Nausicaä was actually not meant to be a princess, which would ostracize her from his working class ideals). He has since "exorcised" Communism completely due to its perceived fundamental flaws." That's what the so-called source says. It gives no quotes of Miyazaki himself, and gives no examples. Obviously "Nausicaa was not meant to be a princess" doesn't imply anything about working class ideals. Any fool knows that regardless of political ideology, making a character a princess makes her different and "noble" and separates her from the non-royal common characters. If somebody can come up with an actual example of Marxism being "allowed to influence how his protagonists are portrayed", go ahead-- good luck though. 69.95.39.34 02:56, 26 February 2007 (UTC)

Found source on all this. Interview with Mr. Miyazaki himself. Search for "marxism" in the page. [8] I'm going to add it to the main article. 195.38.101.16 17:50, 31 May 2007 (UTC)

Flying Phantom Ship

Should something be mentioned of his role in animating the giant robot in the film Flying Phantom Ship? As I understand it he was largely unknown back when he did it. Esn 20:02, 2 October 2006 (UTC)

Picture

I love the little anime picture, but shouldn't there be a real picture as well? Perhaps lower in the article? Jachra 07:20, 13 October 2006 (UTC)

I disagree. I think the picture is inappropriate, it appears to be fan art. when you click the picture, the file caption is thus; "This is a picture of him by en:User:Tarnas." In fact, the user has submitted several drawings of people. There should be a real picture of Miyazaki, or a drawing by Miyazaki, not fan art. I am going to remove it, but I will not object if it's re-submitted.--Macca7174 13:56, 19 October 2006 (UTC)

It should be an actual photograph of him, not a user-made drawing. That's ridiculous. 68.123.227.117 14:41, 19 November 2006 (UTC)

The current interpretation of Wikipedia policy is that commercially copyrighted photographs of people can not be used. This drawing however was mentioned at Wikipedia_talk:Fair_use#drawings_as_replacement_to_ALL_fair_use_photos.3F. Shawnc 17:27, 7 December 2006 (UTC)

The above statement does not understand the concept of "fair use". Any copyrighted image which fairly, accurately, and relevantly depicts the subject matter (assuming no free version is available) is absolutely fair use and should be used. However, whoever uploads such an image will have to explain which page it is intended to be used on and how it is used, in order that it not be used anywhere else. Using a fan-art image is a bad idea since the image is not official in any sense. -- abfackeln 00:05, 23 April 2007 (UTC)

I think that this ridiculous looking drawing needs to be removed and replaced with a good photograph of the man. That, or this en:User:Tarnas fellow needs to produce a drawing that actually looks like Miyazaki, at least to some degree. I seriously doubt that there cannot be a single decent, usable photograph out there that can be used in place of this mess.

I replaced it with a more appropriate photo. If it doesn't meet wiki guidelines, feel free to remove it. Or I'll go home and draw a better portrait of Miyazaki, because honestly the one that was here previously was horrible. FACT50 21:01, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

Please see the first topic titled Picture. A photograph is definitely preferrable to an illustration, especially in the infobox. If an illustration is included in the article at all, I recommend the scribbled Miyazaki self-portrait, that appears in the Miyazaki - Moebius book. Comme le Lapin 20:31, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

Interviews

Here are links to pages about two interviews with Miyazaki:

• Blogcritics on the New Yorker
• Midnight Eye

--Monocrat 19:10, 17 October 2006 (UTC)

Influences

Some questions on the latest edit:

1. Are we putting the Japanese influences first because they're the most important/obvious, or because Miyazaki is Japanese?

2. Is the resemblance to Kurosawa something that has been pointed out in sources?

3. Is cinematography a proper term to use when discussing animation?

4. Should the mention of Japanese folklore at the end of this section be moved up, or should the Princess Who Loved Insects reference be moved down?

Nareek 19:35, 22 October 2006 (UTC)

In answer to your third question, yes, cinematography is a proper term to use when discussing animation. Drawings are photographed by a camera operator, who follows storyboards as directors of photography do in live-action films. Comme le Lapin 20:34, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

Akira Miyazaki

Isa Akira Miyazaki, co-screenwriter of The Wizard of Oz (1982) any relationship to Hayao? Joe Hisaishi worked on that film prior to working with Hayao. Could this be their connection? --Scottandrewhutchins 02:21, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

Messy

In October 2006 "A Trip to Tynemouth" by Miyazaki ブラッカムの爆撃機―チャス・マッギルの幽霊/ぼくを作ったもの (単行本) by ロバート・アトキンソン ウェストール (著), 宮崎 駿 (編集), Robert Westall (原著), 金原 瑞人 (翻訳) ISBN-13: 978-4000246323 was published in Japan.

Does anyone else think this bit looks messy? I don't think there's any need for so much Japanese text, and to be honest I can't figure out what it's supposed to say. davekeeling 20:41, 28 January 2007 (UTC)

I agree. Too much non-Romanized text is disruptive to the reading experience. I've edited this already. Comme le Lapin 20:35, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

Affinity for Pigs

Why has no one mentioned Miyazakis love of Pigs?? He often doodles self portraits of himself as one, as well as using them in many of his conceptual designs. I can't remember where but I believe on nausicaa.net there is a trivia section with a mention of this?? FACT50 07:09, 1 February 2007 (UTC)

Howl's Moving castle link

the link connects to the article about the book, not the film. i wasn't sure if this was intentional so i've left it as is —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Therandomoctopus (talk • contribs) 11:40, 24 February 2007 (UTC).

Original Research?

Another visual element commonly found in Miyazaki's films is the use of character designs that are similar in appearance. Audiences humorously consider this to be an artistic perception that such characters are actors and actresses who reappear in his films.

This sounds like original research to me. While I agree that there are many similarities between his characters, I don't think this belongs in the article. If no one has any objections, I'll remove it. davekeeling 15:27, 15 March 2007 (UTC)

I agree. Also, "Lack of Stereotypical Characters"? I love Miyazaki movies, but please. Castle in the Sky, in particular, managed to string together just about every anime cliché in the book. It had a plucky boy hero and dead parents, for god's sake. Kyle543 01:59, 14 April 2007 (UTC)

ANPO Hantai

I've removed this text because it is unsourced WP:BLP.

Miyazaki was also influenced by his political background in the ANPO Hantai (opponents of the US-Japan Security Treaty) and labor movements of the 1960s. These political roots had an influence on the themes of his films.

Feel free to re-add if a citation can be found --h2g2bob (talk) 07:14, 19 May 2007 (UTC)