One of the world’s most influential and talented filmmakers is hanging up his hat, at least in some capacity. Hayao Miyazaki, co-founder of Studio Ghibli, is currently touring festivals following the Japanese summer release of what will be his final feature film, The Wind Rises. Various news outlets are reporting that Studio Ghibli President Koji Hoshino revealed today at a press conference in Italy that Miyazaki will no longer writer/direct feature-length films.
Of course, the 72-year-old helmer also said such things at various points in his career, including over sixteen years ago with Princess Mononoke, but considering the formal announcement, this seems official. If feature-length films are out of the question, this still opens the door for short works and other forms of entertainment, but it’s certainly sad to see him rule long-form works out of the equation.
Thankfully, his swan song has been heralded as one of his most personal films and one can check out the subtitled trailer for it below, as well as a beautiful photo featuring some of the worlds he’s created. With recent acquisition from Disney, hopefully we’ll see it in U.S. theaters by the end of next year and one can check back for our review of it from the fall festival circuit.
What do you make of Miyazaki’s retirement?