Follow us on Google News
Get the latest updates directly in your Google News feed
Hayao Miyazaki is such an established director that any writer would feel honored if Miyazaki came knocking on their door to adapt their works. However, his reputation hasn’t always been so stellar, and in his early years as an animator, Miyazaki faced a brutal rejection.
Before Studio Ghibli was created in 1985 and even before Miyazaki’s debut as a feature film director in 1979, he and co-founder Toshio Suzuki were on a quest to create a unique animation. This endeavor of theirs was based on their appreciation ofPippi Longstocking, a series of children’s books by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren.
Hayao Miyazaki Flew to Sweden Only to Face Dejection
In the 1970s, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata worked for another animation studio, A-Production, and began to collaborate in the hopes of creating an animation out of Pippi Longstocking. Thus, the duo, accompanied by Yasuo Otsuka, an influential animator, flew to Sweden for a planned meeting with Astrid Lindgren. They traveled to request the film rights for the series and to conduct some preliminary location scouting.
“It’s actually kind of disturbing”: Hayao Miyazaki on 1 Studio Ghibli Movie Reception That He Felt Was Going to Fail
While in Sweden,Miyazaki and Takahatascouted locations, drew inspiration from Sweden’s beautiful atmosphere, andincorporated them into their storyboards.However, once they reached Stockholm, they were told that Lindgren would not be able to see them.Miyazaki later expressedthat he was extremely disappointed with Beta Film, the intermediary, who had not arranged for things better. But at the same time, the director was aware of the reality.
But on the other hand it was pretty obvious. You don’t just meet with someone who suddenly turns up from somewhere in Asia and says ‘I want to turn your book into an animation.
At the time, Miyazaki wasn’t a famous director yet, and Japanese animation or manga weren’t famous in Sweden yet.Astrid Lindgren’s websitestates that she was also fundamentally against the idea of creating animated versions of her stories. It was only in the late 1990s when Lindgren gave permission for a Canadian animation of Pippi, but she was never satisfied with the result.
Disappointed is an Under-Statement for What Hayao Miyazaki Felt
The trip to Sweden as well as the stay and scouting for locations, must have drained a significant amount of money. Not to mention, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata had already begun their preliminary work on storyboards to present to the author. Maybethe disappointmentwould not have been so huge if the author herself had looked through their research and still denied it. But they had to return without ever getting a chance to show her their concepts.
“That isn’t something to aim for”: Your Name Director Makoto Shinkai on Being Called the Second Hayao Miyazaki That He Hates
Would Astrid Lindgren have agreed to a new request after observing Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli’s success? That is impossible to say, but what you’re able to be sure of is that Miyazaki is not ready to give the project a second chance.
We invested an enormous amount of energy in doing what we were planning to do. It depleted me, so now I no longer want to do it. That’s just how it goes. You cannot succeed in animation if you don’t devote everything you’ve got to it.
However, Hayao Miyazaki was inspired byPippi Longstocking, and it lived on through his and Takahata’s works. Takahata later directedPanda! Go, Panda!, a short film that sports a female protagonist who looks very close to Pippi Longstocking. The screenplay of the short was done by Hayao Miyazaki. Miyazaki even modeled the town of Koriko fromKiki’s Delivery Service, after Gotland, the largest Swedish island.
Aaheli Pradhan
Anime Content Writer
Articles Published :1557
Aaheli is an Anime Content Writer at FandomWire with 1300+ published articles. With five years of experience under her belt, she is a living, breathing encyclopedia for anime and manga. From Shonen and Shojo to the most niche anime, nothing escapes her radar. Her poisons of choice are Assassination Classroom, Gintama, Ouran High School Host Club and every Ghibli movie ever. She believes in living a slow life, surrounded by incomplete art projects and her beloved cats.
More from Aaheli Pradhan
Top 5 Best Time Skips in Anime
‘Gintama’ Creator Admits New Movie Is “A tool for dirty adults to make a quick buck”
Fighting Girls Review and Ending Explained: Koume and Tiara’s Rivalry Hid a Deeper Loneliness
Recommended
Spider-Man: Brand New Day – How the 2008 Comic Arc Could Shape Tom Holland’s Next Movie
One Piece: Why Luffy’s Final Fight Will Break Shonen (& It Won’t Be Against Imu or Blackbeard)
‘Bachelor in Paradise’ Season 10 Episode 9: Release Date and What to Expect
NYT Strands July 18, 2025 Hints and Solution
You Can Finally Watch Brad Pitt’s ‘F1’ Blockbuster at Home: Digital Release Date Revealed - Report
NYT Pips Solution for August 11, 2025
Hayao Miyazaki
