Toshio Suzuki commemorates the publication of Ghibli’s Fellows. Image Credit: Natalie

So, I guess we can say that Miyazaki’s taking us on one last epic adventure?

In a letter dated November 28, Toshio Suzuki described Hayao Miyazaki’s upcoming film Kimi-tachi wa Dō Ikiru ka (How Do You Live?) as an “action-adventure fantasy.” According to the letter, the film is hand-drawn.

In the letter, Suzuki stated that he understands why Miyazaki returned from retirement after reading the film’s concept, and noted that Miyazaki can’t finish with The Wind Rises. He also noted that Studio Ghibli will continue making feature films until “the day it fails,” as they are “the main street of Ghibli.”

Hayao Miyazaki speaks to reporters at his Koganei studio. Image Credit: Japan Times

Suzuki also added that Goro Miyazaki is working on new CGI work.

In November 2016, we reported that Miyazaki expressed a desire to return to movie production. In NHK special Owaranai Hito Miyazaki Hayao (The Man Who Is Not Done: Hayao Miyazaki), it was revealed that Miyazaki was working on CGI short Kemushi no Boro. He wasn’t satisfied with the format, though, and presented a project proposal for a feature-length film in August 2016.

Miyazaki commented on the matter, stating that if the feature would take five years to make, he’d be 80 by the end of production. Though Miyazaki retired from feature films after 2013’s The Wind Rises, he continued to work as a director on shorts and features for the Studio Ghibli Museum.

In May, Studio Ghibli put out a hiring call for new background artists and in-between animators for the feature. In February, we reported that Miyazaki was doing prep work for a new feature film, with the aim of having it in theaters by the 2020 Olympics. Studio Ghibli co-founder Toshio Suzuki noted at the time that “[r]ight now in Tokyo, he’s putting all his effort into making it [the feature].”

Yesterday, Studio Ghibli appointed Kiyofumi Nakajima as the new president of the organization. He previously served as director of the Studio Ghibli museum.

Source: Eiga Natalie