Hayao MIYAZAKI is one of the greatest animators and directors in Japan. The entertaining plots, compelling characters and breathtaking animation in his films have earned him international renown from critics as well as public recognition domestically. Disney's commitment to introduce the films to the rest of the world will let more people appreciate the high-quality works Miyazaki has given us.

Hayao Miyazaki was born in Tokyo on January 5, 1941. He started his career in 1963 as an animator at the studio Toei Doga, and was subsequently involved in many early classics of Japanese animation. From the beginning, he was already commanding everyone's attention with his incredible ability to draw, and the seemingly endless stream of ideas he proposed for movies.

In 1971, he moved to A Pro with Isao Takahata, then to Nippon Animation in 1973, where he was heavily involved in the TV animation series World Masterpiece Theater. He directed his first TV series, Mirai Shonen Conan in 1978, then moved to Tokyo Movie Shinsha to direct his first movie, Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro in 1979.

In 1984, his film Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind, based on the manga (comic) of the same title he had started two years before, was released. The success of the film led to the establishment of a new animation studio, Studio Ghibli, at which Miyazaki has directed five feature-length films and produced another three in the years between 1986 and 1997. All of these films enjoyed critical and box office successes. In particular, the Miyazaki-directed film Princess Mononoke received the Japan Academy Award for Best Film and is the highest-grossing (about US$150 million) domestic film in history.

Besides animation, Miyazaki also draws manga. His major work is the Nausicaä manga, an epic tale he had been working on intermittently from 1982 to 1994 while he was busy making animated films. Another manga, Hikoutei Jidai, was later evolved into his 1992 film Porco Rosso.

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