Miyazaki’s Ponyo
This past weekend family moviegoers in Japan lined up to experience Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea, (Gake no Ue no Ponyo), the latest 2D-animated feature by Studio Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki.
Ponyo, which was released on 481 screens on Friday in Japan, centers on a five-year-old boy’s friendship with a “girl-fish” with human face who wants to be human and ventures out of her underwater world. The boy’s character is based on Miyazaki’s own son Goro. Miyazaki, was reportedly directly involved in many aspects of the animation himself, preferring to draw the sea and waves himself. With a plot that echoes Hans Christian Andersen’s beloved The Little Mermaid fairy tale as well as a traditional Japanese folk tale, the movie received positive reviews from critics.
via Miyazaki’s Ponyo Swimming with Raves | Animation Magazine