Hayao Miyazaki’s influence on the anime world simply cannot be overstated, as the anime director continues to create new magical stories for Studio Ghibli. With his latest film, The Boy And The Heron, winning “Best Animated Picture” at this year’s Academy Awards, Miyazaki’s original statement declaring his retirement has been rescinded. Aiming to create more works in the future, the creator has been named as one of Time Magazine’s most influential people of the year.
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While Miyazaki has stated that he won’t be retiring any time soon, Ghibli has yet to confirm what movies they will have in the works in the future. The legendary anime studio is currently working on its first theme park in Japan, recently revealing real-life Cat Buses that are able to whisk parkgoers to different sections of the magical locale.
Hayao Miyazaki: Most Influential Anime Director
In declaring that Hayao Miyazaki was one of Time’s “Most Influential People of 2024”, none other than legendary director Guillermo Del Toro wrote an article to celebrate the occasion. Del Toro’s thoughts read as such, “Miyazaki’s work provokes that rare emotion—the shiver of recognition of a type of beauty that is impossible in the real world and thus exists only in his films. Yet he is also a brutal realist regarding greed, war, and human rage. He knows that we shape and destroy the planet and that humans are the best and the worst of our world.”
Del Toro’s thoughts continue, “He is entirely genuine. A one-of-a-kind creator who exists fully in his art. He is the single most influential animation director in the history of the medium, and one of my top 10 favorite storytellers in any audiovisual medium. The Boy and the Heron is a subtle masterpiece that exerts a gravitational pull—and many of us feel that pull intensely.”
Whatever project that Miyazaki decides to work on in the future, it’s sure to send ripples through both the world of anime and the world of entertainment in general.
Which anime legends do you think should join Miyazaki on Time’s Most Influential People of 2024 list? Do you think Hayao will ever retire from the anime world? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of Ghibli.
