Ethical Matters: Ghibli and Goodness

Studio Ghibli films are about a lot more than wonderous lands, magical creatures and plucky young heroes and heroines. From Laputa: Castle in the Sky, via Princess Mononoke to Grave of the Fireflies and Pom Poko, Studio Ghibli tells tales of the horrors of conflict, the destruction of nature and the goodness of being honest and earnest. Join Ghibli experts Prof Rayna Denison and Jake Cunningham as they discuss the ethical messages within Ghibli’s magical worlds.

Rayna Denison is Professor of Film and Digital Arts and Global Engagement Director for the School of Arts at the Unversity of Bristol. She is an expert in animation studies and contemporary Japanese cinema. She is the author of Studio Ghibli: An Industrial History, Anime: A Critical Introduction, and the editor of Princess Mononoke: Understanding Studio Ghibli’s Monster Princess. Her academic articles can be found in journals like the Journal of Cinema and Media Studies, Velvet Light Trap, Japan Forum and the International Journal of Cultural Studies.

Jake Cunningham is a multimedia writer and producer, and co-creator of the acclaimed Ghibliotheque podcast. Together with co-creator and author Michael Leader, Jake has written several books including Ghibliverse: Studio Ghibli Beyond the Films, The Animation Atlas and An Unoffical Guide to the World of Studio Ghibli. He discusses film on the BBC World Service, and has written and voiced video essays for the BBC and Little White Lies. He has written for Empire, The I and NME among others. His first animated short film as writer and producer, made with the BFI, was released in 2021.