Summary
Hayao Miyazaki’s one-volume watercolor illustrated manga, Shuna’s Journey, won Best U.S. Edition for International-Asian Documentary at the Eisner Awards. Shuna’s Journey follows a prince on a quest to find a miracle grain and save his village from starvation. Studio Ghibli’s latest film, The Boy and the Heron, dominated the Japanese box office, grossing $11.3 million in its opening weekend. Ghibli Park reveals new attractions based on popular movies
Hayao Miyazaki’s one-volume watercolor illustrated manga, Shuna’s Journey, took home one of the biggest awards in the manga industry.
According to Anime New Network, the classic story won Best American Edition of International Documentary—Asia category at this year’s Eisner Awards, beating Junji Ito’s Black Paradox, Tatsuki Fujimoto’s Look Back, Murasaki Yamada’s Talk to My Back, and Masaaki Nakayama’s Radio PTSD. Shuna’s Journey was released in Japan in 1983 and eventually received an English release in November 2022.
The short manga follows the prince of a small mountain village. After encountering a dying traveler who tells him about a miracle grain, Shuna sets out on a journey westward in hopes of finding that grain and saving her people from persistent starvation and death. The story was adapted into a radio drama in 1987 with Yōji Matsuda, who would voice Prince Ashitake in 1997’s Princess Mononoke, playing the lead role.
The Boy and the Heron Recently debuted in Japan
There have been many recent developments for Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli beyond Shuna’s Journey to win Eisner. Most notable is The Boy and the Heron (also known by its original Japanese title How Do You Live?), the latest feature film from the legendary director and award-winning studio, which opened in Japan on July 14. Despite receiving little advertising, the film dominated the Japanese box office in its opening weekend, grossing an impressive $11.3 million.
The Boy and The Heron is a major project by Studio Ghibli. Production actually started in 2016 and studio President Toshio Suzuki explained in an interview that although 60 animators worked on the fully hand-drawn project, they “can only create one minute of animation in a month.”
Furthermore, Ghibli Park has revealed new attractions that will open in the near future. Mononoke Village, which is clearly influenced by Princess Mononoke, will feature a statue of the boar god Okkoto-nushi with a built-in slide, and the Witch’s Valley, inspired by Howl’s Moving Castle, will allow visitors to visit Sophie’s hat shop. Ghibli Park already has attractions based on other beloved movies like My Neighbor Totoro and Whisper of the Heart.
Shuna’s Journey is distributed in North America by First Second Books, and many of Studio Ghibli’s classics, including Princess Mononoke, Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away, and Castle in the Sky, are available to stream on MAX. The Boy and the Heron will be released in North America later this year.
Source: Anime News Network