Mary and the Witch's Flower English Dub Trailer

Studio Ponoc and Madman Entertainment have unveiled the first trailer for the English-language release of Mary and the Witch's Flower. As you would expect from an animation studio staffed by Studio Ghibli alumni, the art direction and animation looks wonderful. Colors just pop out of the screen with verve and gusto. Shots are skillfully composed, complex yet still easily understood. There is a great amount of creativity in these scenes. I'm really looking forward to seeing this movie in theaters.

I really enjoy this new dub. The actors are all sporting English accents, which fits the story much better than the typically bland Southern California accents you get most of the time. I am reminded of the brilliant UK-exclusive soundtrack for Arrietty the Borrower, which I greatly preferred to the US Disney version.

To longtime Ghibli fans, this movie looks like a mashup of Miyazaki movies. If you're used to playing the "Ghibli Riffs" game, then you will have a field day with this picture. I spotted a good number in this trailer, which I will detail in a future post. For me, I always enjoy spotting these unique easter eggs, and I'm glad to see the tradition continue into the next generation.

Mary and the Witch's Flower pulled in respectable numbers at Japan's box office, certainly nowhere near the level of Hayao Miyazaki blockbusters, but even the master himself wasn't able to sustain that stratospheric level of success forever. Studio Ponoc and director Hiromasa Yonebayashi should be proud of their accomplishments. He has really progressed as a director. I was one who felt that The Secret World of Arrietty spoke more to his future potential than his actual skills (the movie is entertaining but slight). When Marnie Was There showed great improvement in his filmmaking skills; still not quite to the level of Miyazaki, Takahata, Yoshifumi Kondo or Yoshiyuki Momose, but better than the other lesser known directors. Now he is ready to conquer the world.

If this trailer appears a touch too derivative of Ghibli, it's clearly a gesture of affection as much as a desire to carry the flame forward. Given the enormous costs of producing hand-drawn animation of this quality, all concessions to the mass market must be taken. Ponoc needs Ghibli fans to show up in force, especially in the home country. These folks need a big success so they can continue making movies. We don't want the spirit of Ghibli to truly die out.

Next time, however, I expect to see something truly original, something that breaks in a new direction. Perhaps we will even see another feature director emerge to lighten the burden on Yonebayashi's shoulders? I always thought Katsuya Kondo had great potential in the director's chair. I still cannot understand why Momose was never given a feature film at Ghibli; his Capsule music video trilogy is the best thing Ghibli created in ages. Just imagine if Toshio Suzuki tapped his shoulder to sit on the captain's chair...instead of Goro Miyazaki, the reluctant prince.

Mary and the Witch's Flower opens on January 18, 2018 in the United States. Get your tickets early.

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Riffs: Spirited Away, Mary and the Witch's Flower

It's no secret that Yonebayashi and Studio Ponoc see themselves as the next generation of Studio Ghibli. Many of their artists are alumni from the famed studio, and wish to continue the tradition of high quality, hand-drawn animation into the future. This will be a daunting challenge, as CG has completely overwhelmed everything in its path, but hopefully there will be enough people in the world who prefer the old ways. We will see.

Mary and the Witch's Flower at times feels like a mashup of all your favorite Hayao Miyazaki movies, including Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. Here, in this shot, we see a riff that points back to Miyazaki's 2001 Oscar-winning classic, albeit with a slight change in camera angle. It is here that Yonebayashi makes a fascinating choice: he quotes the Ghibli movies, but not in the slavish blink-and-you'll-miss-it style you see from other films. When Marnie Was There did the very same thing, quoting and riffing on Omohide Poro Poro and Spirited Away but used as a reference point, not simply a challenging bit of obscure trivia for the fans (or, most likely, the creators).

For me, the "Ghibli Riffs" are one of the most fascinating thing about these movies, if for no other reason than the fact that hardly anybody knows these things exist. If I have failed in any aspect with this website project, it's not properly cataloging all these obscure Easter eggs. Oh, well, whatever, nevermind.

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The Making of Mary and the Witch's Flower

This 40-minute documentary goes behind the scenes at Studio Ponoc to chronicle the making of their debut animated feature film, Mary and the Witch's Flower. Narrated by Hana Sugisaki (the voice of Mary) and Hiroko Kimata, this program follows producer Yoshiaki Nishimura and director Hiromasa Yonebayashi during the production and promotion of their film.

Expect a cameo appearance by Studio Ghibli founders Isao Takahata and Toshio Suzuki near the end, as the finished movie is shown to Yonebayashi's mentors (Hayao Miyazaki declined to attend, but gave Mary and the Witch's Flower his thumbs-up). All parties involved see Studio Ponoc as the child of Ghibli, and wish for its success. The movie went on to moderate success at the box office; hopefully that was enough to convince investors to support more features (four short film projects are currently in production).

This video does include English subtitles. I wouldn't at all be surprised if this is included as a bonus feature on the inevitable GKIDS Blu-Ray/DVD.

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Mary and the Witch's Flower: Studio Ponoc Interview

The Verge has an excellent interview with Studio Ponoc founder (and former Studio Ghibli producer) Yoshiaki Nishimura and director Hiromasa Yonebayashi (When Marnie Was There) about their latest venture, the animated fantasy feature Mary and the Witch's Flower. They discuss the movie, the studio's founding in the wake of Ghibli's sabbatical, and their future plans together.

Here is a short sampling of that interview. You can read the complete article at The Verge.

What was the process like of bringing Studio Ponoc together?

Yoshiaki Nishimura: This was a very difficult, tough three years for us. We were at Studio Ghibli until the end of 2014. And then two and a half years later, we had to complete a feature film, starting from zero, basically. And the two main difficulties were that we didn’t have the Studio Ghibli brand name, because our new studio was not known, and so trying to collect the financing was difficult. We had to work with a rather low budget. And at Studio Ghibli, there were 150 to 200 creators with the wonderful environment, with hardware, software, computers, servers all set up in the production studio itself. Whereas we had to start from zero, and build up that environment and equipment for our production.
We started with two to three people. But by the end, we were 450 creative people working on the film. Within these limitations, we had to aim for the quality and meaningful content similar to films Studio Ghibli had made. That was a very tough bar for us to accomplish.  

Why this particular story? What was the draw? 

YN: In order to make this first film for the studio, we thought it would be best to make a film that was quite the opposite from When Marnie Was There, the last film director Yonebayashi made at Studio Ghibli. When Marnie Was There is about a quiet girl in interior struggle. It’s a very calm movie. But the special talent director Yonebayashi has, that he gained from director Hayao Miyazaki at Studio Ghibli, is drawing dynamic action as an animator. So the idea was to have a very energetic girl moving around in a very fantastic way in a fantasy world. So the topic we chose was a witch. 

I read many children’s books and young adult books to search for projects to film. Many of those — when a witch character faces difficulty — they use magic to solve the problem. The Little Broomstick was the only story I saw where the heroine rejects magic at a crucial point, at the most difficult point. The quote from the book is something like, “I’m not going to use magic to open this door. I’m going to use my own powers. However long it may take, I’m going to do it on my own.” I thought that would be wonderful for the first concept of the film, because we have left the magic umbrella of Studio Ghibli, and now we have to walk with our own strength and power. So this fits the situation that director Yonebayashi and I as producer and other former Studio Ghibli creators faced as well. 

What’s next for Studio Ponoc? Are you are you planning on making more films that look and feel like Studio Ghibli? Does the studio want to branch out further? 

YN: One thing I learned from director Takahata is that the content decides what kind of expression to use. If you only have one form of an expression, it just becomes a style, rather than a fit with the content. So it depends on what kind of material we’re dealing with, as to what kind of expression and style we end up showing. Our heritage from Studio Ghibli makes us very strong believers in 2D animation. But it’s not that we reject 3D animation. There may be some content that would be good for a kind of fusing of 2D and 3D animation. 

At Studio Ponoc, we are working on four short films right now. One is being directed by director Yonebayashi, and there are three other directors working on the other shorts. But we also are determined to continue making feature-length film. And for us, the heroes and heroines are the children we are making the films for. We want to continue to make films that both children and adults can enjoy watching together. That is our mission, and that’s what we have brought forward from our experiences.

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Mary and the Witch's Flower US Premier Announced

Animation movie distributor GKIDS has today announced the US date for Hiromasa Yonebayashi's Mary and the Witch's Flower. The film will play a special one-night premier on January 18, 2018 in select theaters. The screenings will be presented by Fathom Events, and you can purchase advance tickets directly from their website.

In addition, GKIDS has revealed the official US poster for the film, which looks terrific. It's different from the Japanese poster designs, but very similar. Studio Ponoc and "Academy Award Nominated" director Yonebayashi are given the top space, which is very generous.

Studio Ponoc is a new animation studio staffed by Studio Ghibli alumni, and Mary can be seen as a direct descendent to the films of Hayao Miyazaki. We see the obvious parallels to Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. What Yonebayashi brings to the table is a gentle sensitivity, an ability to get into the depths of his heroines. When Marnie Was There, his previous movie (and Studio Ghibli's final feature before their "retirement"), is an exceptional portrait of teenage alienation and loneliness, wrapped in the blankets of a nostalgic ghost story. He is a storyteller with great potential, and he is a rising star to watch in the coming years.

I have not seen Mary and the Witch's Flower yet, and I have consciously avoided learning too much, apart from the Japanese movie trailers. I always enjoy walking into a theater with as few expectations as possible. I know the former Ghibli crew will bring their "A" game. What more do you need to know?

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