Studio Ghibli’s New Anime Is So Exclusive You’ll Need to Go to Japan to See It
Studio Ghibli has officially launched two major new attractions at Ghibli Park, with the debut of an exclusive original anime and the opening of Hayao Miyazaki’s first-ever art exhibition created specifically for the theme park.
Studio Ghibli is one of Japan’s most celebrated animation studios, responsible for acclaimed films including My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Howl’s Moving Castle and The Boy and the Heron, with its works continuing to attract fans from around the world.
The new additions further expand Ghibli Park’s immersive experience by offering visitors original attractions that cannot be experienced anywhere else.
The centerpiece of the new exhibition is a collection of 31 handcrafted “Panorama Box” dioramas created by Hayao Miyazaki over the course of three years.
The layered artworks recreate memorable scenes spanning nearly the director’s entire career, beginning with Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and continuing through to his most recent feature film, The Boy and the Heron.
Alongside his theatrical releases, the exhibition also includes scenes from the short animated films originally produced for the Ghibli Museum in Tokyo, which have since also been screened at Ghibli Park.
Each Panorama Box uses multiple layers of flat illustrations to create convincing depth and perspective, drawing inspiration from the multiplane camera techniques traditionally used during hand-drawn animation production.
The result bridges two-dimensional illustration and three-dimensional display art, offering visitors a fresh way to experience Miyazaki’s distinctive visual storytelling.
The exhibition itself has been installed inside a space recreated to resemble one of the interior locations from The Boy and the Heron, further enhancing the immersive atmosphere.
Every display has been positioned at a height intended for children to look directly into, with the park recommending that adult visitors crouch down to experience the same sense of depth and immersion.
During the exhibition’s opening ceremony, Ghibli Park director Goro Miyazaki explained that although his father had little involvement in planning the park itself, he wanted to leave his own creative contribution by producing the Panorama Box collection.
Visitors can also experience A Night in the Valley of Witches, the first brand-new Studio Ghibli anime produced in three years, which made its debut on July 8 at Ghibli Park’s Orion Theater.
The 14-minute short is co-directed by Goro Miyazaki and veteran animator Akihiko Yamashita, who previously served as animation director on Howl’s Moving Castle.
Set within Ghibli Park’s Valley of Witches area, the story takes place among the attractions inspired by Howl’s Moving Castle, Kiki’s Delivery Service and Earwig and the Witch.
The story follows a newly hired park employee who begins encountering mysterious incidents while carrying out unusual building maintenance work, including fireplaces lighting themselves and water flowing from taps that should already be turned off.
His experienced coworker Kikue dismisses his concerns until he encounters her during an overnight shift wearing a witch’s cape, revealing that she is a witch before casting a mysterious spell.
According to Goro Miyazaki, the concept originated from imagining that the stationary version of Howl’s Moving Castle at Ghibli Park deserved the chance to move again, just as it does in the film.
The Panorama Box exhibition appears to have been installed as a permanent or long-term attraction, while A Night in the Valley of Witches joins the Orion Theater’s rotating lineup of limited-time exclusive short films, although no end date for its initial screening has yet been announced.
Both attractions are located inside Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse area of Ghibli Park, meaning visitors will need to purchase admission tickets that include access to that section of the park before planning their visit.
If you enjoyed this article, you can see more from us directly in your Google feed by adding us as a preferred source.
This post may contain affiliate links, and Essential Japan may earn a commission if you purchase through them.
