Do you like beautiful animation? Wonderfully complex, incredibly, strong, relatable female protagonists? Fantastical plots with beautiful messages? Far off places, daring sword fights, magic spells, a prince in disguise? 

If you do, and you haven’t seen the movies in Studio Ghibli‘s repertoire, you, my friend have some watching to do.

Often called the “Walt Disney of Japan”, Studio Ghibli’s Hayao Miyazaki has directed and written the scripts for most of the incredible masterpieces that have come out of this studio since the 1980s. The twenty movies in his repertoire range from the lighthearted and whimsical (like My Neighbor Totoro) to the intense and dark (like Princess Mononoke). All, however, utilize brilliant plots and fantastically written characters to express Miyazaki’s understanding of human complexity.

One of the best parts about Studio Ghibli films, however, is the breathtaking animation, which is why I could think of no better subject for this week’s fashion inspiration. 

I’ll be starting off with my personal three favorite Ghibli films: Howl’s Moving Castle, Castle in the Sky, and Kiki’s Delivery Service. Let’s get started! 

Table of Contents

Howl’s Moving Castle

First up is Howl’s Moving Castle, originally released in 2004. (See our full post on fashion inspired by the film here!)

The movie is based on the book of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones and follows the story of Sophie Hatter, a young girl who is turned into an old woman after being cursed by a witch. Sophie then embarks on an adventure that explores the destructive effects of war and the incredible power of human compassion.

If this sounds like a reverse “Beauty and the Beast” to you, you’re not wrong, but Hayao Miyazaki films are famous for having powerful feminist messages, and this one is no different. Instead of relying on the love of someone else to turn Sophie young again, Sophie must learn to love herself and be confident in who she is to break the curse.