New Blu-ray out today in North America

Studio Ghibli fans in North America have new reason to celebrate today with the release of Isao Takahata's Grave of the Fireflies (Hotaru no Haka) on Blu-ray from Sentai Filmworks.

 

Until now, only five Studio Ghibli films were available on Blu-ray in North America, all courtesy of Walt Disney Studios.  An many fans are already aware, Grave of the Fireflies was not one of the titles that Disney acquired the home video distribution rights to following the Disney-Tokuma deal in the late 1990's.  Due to this fact, many fans wondered if the title would ever be released on Blu-ray in North America after the initial release in Japan earlier this year.  The fact that Sentai Filmworks announced a North American Blu-ray release only a few months following the Japanese release was a welcome surprise not only to anime fans, but also fans of the HD format in general.

 

 

As reported previously, Sentai Filmworks has included a brand new English dub produced by Seraphim Digital on this release.  The new English voice cast includes Adam Gibbs as Seita, Emily Neves as Setsuko, Shelley Calene-Black as the children's mother, Marcy Bannor as their aunt, and various additional actors whose names will probably be familiar to frequent anime viewers.

 

As far as picture and sound quality go, the North American Blu-ray release features a 1080p high definition video transfer with the original Japanese audio track and new English dub presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0.  The Japanese audio track can be selected with or without subtitles, depending on the viewer's preference.  The original 1998 English dub, as featured on the previous home video releases of the film, is also included as a selectable track. Special features include a Japanese theatrical trailer, storyboards, and deleted scenes storyboards.

 

An early Blu-ray review is already available from DVDBeaver and the title can be ordered from Amazon.com just in time for the holidays for $19.99.

New Nausicaä manga box set out today

Available today in North America from publisher VIZ Media is the brand new, deluxe hardcover box set of Hayao Miyazaki's epic manga masterpiece Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

The manga series, previously available in a seven-volume "Editor's Choice" edition in North America from VIZ Media, was originally written and illustrated by Hayao Miyazaki over a period of twelve years. The full series ran in Animage magazine from February 1982 to March 1994, although only the first sixteen chapters were used as the basis for the 1984 film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. After the film's release, interest in the manga in Japan increased dramatically, resulting in sales of more than 10 million copies.

The new North American set contains the complete manga series in two deluxe hardcover volumes, packaged inside a decorative slip box. Each volume includes illustrations and text printed in classic sepia-tone as well as an additional eight pages of full-color artwork. An exclusive two-sided fold-out full-color poster is also included, rounding out the set nicely.

The Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind deluxe box set is available on Amazon.com for $34.58.

Happy Birthday, Isao Takahata

This past Monday, October 29, 2012, marked the 76th birthday of animator, director, and Studio Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata.

Born on October 29, 1935 in Ujiyamada, Mie prefecture, Japan, Takahata became interested in animation at a young age after seeing the French animated feature Le Roi et l'oiseau (The King and the Mockingbird).  After joining Toei Animation almost by chance, he made his directorial debut with 1968's Hols: Prince of the Sun (Taiyō no Ōji: Horusu no Daibōken).  After the film failed commercially, Takahata attempted to make an animated feature based on Pippi Longstocking, a character created by children's book author Astrid Lindgren.  When the project didn't pan out, he moved into television animation, directing several episodes of popular anime series including Lupin III (Rupan Sansei), Heidi, Girl of the Alps (Arupusu no Shōjo Haiji), 3000 Leagues in Search of Mother (Haha o Tazunete Sanzenri), and Anne of Green Gables (Akage no An).

After the success of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (Kaze no Tani no Naushika), Hayao Miyazaki invited Takahata to join the newly-founded Studio Ghibli.  There Takahata would go on to direct films including Grave of the Fireflies (Hotaru no Haka), Only Yesterday (Omohide Poro Poro), Pom Poko (Heisei Tanuki Gassen Ponpoko), and, most recently, My Neighbors the Yamadas (Hōhokekyo Tonari no Yamada-kun) in 1999.

Takahata is currently in production on a new feature, a film rumored to be based on a 10th century Japanese folktale known as The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter (Taketori Monogatari), which is due out next year in Japan.  Grave of the Fireflies, the first film directed by Takahata after joining Studio Ghibli, is currently available for pre-order on Amazon.com for $16.99 and is scheduled for release on Blu-ray for the first time in North America on November 20, 2012.

Pre-order Grave of the Fireflies on Blu-ray

In a little less than four weeks, Isao Takahata's 1988 animated masterpiece Grave of the Fireflies (Hotaru no Haka) will make its Blu-ray debut in North America courtesy of Sentai Filmworks.

 

As reported previously, the Blu-ray release will feature a a 1080p high definition video transfer with the original Japanese audio track and a new English dub presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0.

 

The title is currently available for pre-order at Amazon.com for only $17.98, an affordable price point, especially when compared to Disney's standard release week pricing of Studio Ghibli titles.

 

Grave of the Fireflies arrives on store shelves in North America on November 20, 2012.

Neppū magazine now available digitally

Studio Ghibli's monthly magazine Neppū, previously obtainable in printed form only from bookstores in Japan, is now available for free download from the studio's official website.

Neppū magazine's October 2012 issue (source)

According to an article published by Anime News Network, Studio Ghibli made the announcement regarding the magazine's new digital format early last week after Japanese fans reported difficulty in obtaining printed copies from local sources.  The monthly magazine is a free handout that serves as a line of communication between the studio and its fans, providing a behind-the-scenes look at their work in animation as well as information on various goings-on within the company and the lives of their employees.  In print since January 2003, this month's issue marks the first time the magazine will be distributed digitally and made widely accessible to fans outside Japan.

The October issue of Neppū will be available for download in PDF format at Studio Ghibli's official site until November 11, 2012.  Additional issues are expected to be posted each month.

Two new Blu-rays headed for U.K. release

In a little less than four weeks, Studio Ghibli fans in the United Kingdom will be able to add two classic Hayao Miyazaki films to their Blu-ray collections.

StudioCanal, a French-based production and distribution company, recently announced plans to release Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro (Rupan Sansei: Kariosutoro no Shiro) and My Neighbour Totoro (Tonari no Totoro) on Blu-ray/DVD combo pack in the United Kingdom on November 12, 2012.  Both films were directed by Hayao Miyazaki and released in Japan in 1979 and 1988, respectively.  Grave of the Fireflies (Hotaru no Haka) was also rumored to be getting a Blu-ray release on the same day, but it appears as though that is not the case, as no official announcement has been made and the title is not currently listed on online stores.

Counting "pre-Ghibli" films Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (Kaze no Tani no Naushika), ten Studio Ghibli Blu-rays will be in available in the United Kingdom by the end of November.  This clearly beats the six titles that will be shelves in North America after Grave of the Fireflies is released next month.  However, since the U.K. releases are typically Region B-locked, fans in North America will either have to wait patiently for Disney to play catch up or resort to importing the titles directly from Japan.

Although a future Disney release My Neighbor Totoro on Blu-ray in North America is pretty much guaranteed, the chances of Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro in high-definition are a little less certain.  Manga Entertainment released a "Special Edition" DVD version of the film in 2006, but their ownership of the home video license is said to have expired in the last few years.  Maybe, if we're lucky, a studio such as GKIDS or Sentai Filmworks will pick up the license, if available, and release this film on Blu-ray in North America once and for all.

Japan Airlines jet illustrated by Hayao Miyazaki

From a princess who soars through the post-apocalyptic skies on her glider in Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wing to a former fighter-pilot-turned-pig in Porco Rosso, to say that Hayao Miyazaki has an appreciation for aircraft would be a huge understatement.  That fascination reached a new level recently when Japan Airlines revealed a Boeing 787 jetliner decorated with illustrations by contest-winning children and the Studio Ghibli founder himself.

Artwork adorns the side of a Boeing 787 jetliner (source)

Anime News Network has shared a story published by the Mainichi Shimbun, a major newspaper in Japan, detailing the results of the "Fly the Skies" program, an art contest held by Japan Airlines (JAL) from 2007 to 2008.  After a delay in the project in the years since, a group of seven children were selected as winners from a group of over 13,000 participants.  Their artwork, along with a piece by Miyazaki, now adorns the side of one of JAL's flagship airplanes.

Miyazaki's contribution is an illustration from one of his short films (source)

As a continuation of the program, JAL will screen Miyazaki's 2002 short film Kūsō no Sora Tobu Kikaitachi (Imaginary Flying Machines) and Porco Rosso on future flights.  During production, JAL served as a major investor in Porco Rosso after originally commissioning it as a short film based on Miyazaki's manga Hikōtei Jidai (The Age of the Flying Boat) for transatlantic flights.