ABSTRACT
Animism has been a central theme of the animation films directed by Miyazaki Hayao (宮崎駿 1941–). As well as being the main theme of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984), the first film by Studio Ghibli, 1 the majority of his stories have animism as an underlying theme. They are Castle in the Sky (1986), My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Princess Mononoke (1997), Spirited Away (2001), and Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (2008). The only two which do not have animistic themes are the films he wrote specifically for adults: Porco Rosso (1992) and The Wind Rises (2013).
