Studio Ghibli’s Partnership with HBO max

Undoubtedly, Studio Ghibli transformed the entertainment world through its blockbuster anime movies that shaped anime fandoms worldwide. The online casino Casimaru provides the same phenomenon through easily accessible sites that offer various deals for players around the globe. Studio Ghibli recently decided to partner with one of the most extensive online streaming applications to expand their reaches in today’s household—HBO Max.

Hayao Miyazaki’s excellent animated films have not come easily. It was only a few months before his studio first offered his film to digital purchase. Now, HBO Max’s subscribers can watch 21 movies produced by Studio Ghibli, including Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, and Howl’s Moving Castle. 

Given that the Japanese studio knew about the relationship with Disney a few years ago, one might hope that Disney+ will be the first place where fans can visit the highly acclaimed online collection. The Mouse House and Studio Ghibli have cooperated in distributing Miyazaki’s films worldwide for nearly two decades. Still, it was not without obstacles that eventually led to the end of their partnership. 

 Before the collaboration between Disney and Studio Ghibli began, Hayao Miyazaki released his first film, “Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind”, in 1984. It was planned to release a movie centered on the princess explorer outside of Japan, and a company called Manson International was responsible for translating the film for American audiences. The result was a heavily edited English dubbed version that shortened Nausicaa’s nearly two hours of running time by 22 minutes. 

 The US release of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind opened up a mistake in the relationship between Studio Ghibli and domestic releases. Hayao Miyazaki and his producers will bear the brunt in the next few years. A few years later, Disney allegedly edited movies like Kiki’s Delivery Service in music, sound effects, and dialogue, even though their contract explicitly opposed this. 

 Disney decided to release “Princess Mononoke”, but it was released under the Miramax brand directed by Harvey Weinstein. The former Hollywood executive is known in the industry as “Harvey Scissorhands”, and he wants to use this movie to cater to Western audiences. As Miyazaki himself confirmed, Toshio Suzuki, the producer of Ghibli, sent Weinstein a katana with a note on it that read “No cuts.” After receiving the news, an unedited Princess Mononoke was released in 1999, but the national audience was limited. 

 The heyday of Disney’s collaboration with Studio Ghibli was the 2001 American release of Spirited Away. John Lasseter is a big fan of Hayao Miyazaki’s work, so he became the producer of the English version and fought for a wide range of film distribution. Compared to the Alice in Wonderland PG rating and comparison, it is more in line with the Disney brand. John Lasseter says, “Whenever we get stuck on Pixar or Disney, I’ll put in a clip or two from Hayao Miyazaki movies just to get inspired again.”

 Even though film critics have highly praised (97% on Rotten Tomatoes), the film’s marketing budget is minimal, and there is almost no box office revenue. In Japan, “Spirited Away” created box office history, becoming the first film to earn $ 200 million overseas before arriving in the United States. At the 2002 Oscars, “Spirited Away” defeated other Disney films in the category’s second and first year to win the Best Animated Feature Award. Disney is affiliated. (The first Oscar for Best Animated Film was awarded to “Shrek” from DreamWorks). This strengthened Disney’s confidence in the animation studio. 

 Disney gave up the rights to GKIDS in 2017 and remained the distributor of the home video rights of Ghibli Movies. Miyazaki decided to stop making movies in 2014 but made a short film, “Caterpillar Polo,” and is making another feature film called “How Do You Live?” 

Until December 2019, Studio Ghibli films cannot be purchased through digital channels; only physical copies can be obtained. However, these 21 movie collections have recently premiered on Netflix in other regions and HBO Max in the United States (you can sign up for a 7-day free trial). Thankfully, these beloved films have found a home for more audiences! Stay tuned to CinemaBlend to learn the behind-the-scenes stories about your favorite movies.