Nausicaa.Net The Hayao Miyazaki Web

||  Main  |  Mailing List  |  Films  |  Search  |  Ghiblink  |  Feedback  ||


  TAKAHATA, Isao


[Takahata]
Miyazaki's long time colleague and another leading head of Ghibli. Unlike Miyazaki, Takahata started his career as a director from the beginning. Born in 1935, he graduated from the most prestigious University in Japan, Tokyo University, and joined the newly founded animation studio, Toei Doga in 1959 (an interesting career move to say the least). He and Miyazaki became friends through the animators' union at Toei Doga, of which Miyazaki was a chairman, and Takahata was a vice chairman. His first movie, "Horus: The prince of the Sun" (1968) is still considered as one of the greatest pieces of Japanese animation. Miyazaki worked as an animator for this movie, providing numerous ideas. Takahata and Miyazaki kept on working as a director-animator team, for great many masterpieces of anime such as "Lupin III", "Heidi", "3000 Leagues in Search of Mother" and "Anne of Green Gables".

When Tokuma approached Miyazaki about making "Nausicaa" into a movie, the only condition Miyazaki asked for was to have Takahata as the producer. This was the first time Takahata ever worked as a producer but he did a great job. He also produced the next Miyazaki movie, "Laputa", and then directed his first Ghibli movie, "Grave of the Fireflies" in 1988. Since then, he directed "Only Yesterday" and "Pom Poko", worked as the music director of "Kiki", and produced "I Can Hear the Sea".

 

To know more about him,


Isao Takahata's movies:

Panda Kopanda / Panda, Panda Cub

Hotaru no Haka / Grave of the Fireflies

Heisei Tanuki Gassen Pompoko / Raccoon War

Omohide Poro Poro / Only Yesterday

More films by Takahata    [new]


Miyazaki's Films

Other Studio Ghibli Films




These pages brought to you by Team Ghiblink.