Anime legend, Hayao Miyazaki, coming out of retirement for one more feature
Legends have a difficult time truly retiring. Look at Peyton Manning, Ozzy Osbourne, Michael Jordan, Garth Brooks and Frank Sinatra. That lure of continuing your creative streak is tempting, and is proving so to anime’s master, Hayao Miyazaki, who retired from feature films in 2013 but is reportedly looking to return for one more go-around.
Anime legend, Hayao Miyazaki, coming out of retirement for one more feature
The Verge reported that news of Miyazaki’s return was dropped into a Japanese TV special, “Hayao Miyazaki: The Man Who Is Not Done,” over the weekend. The director, producer and animator of such stunning anime films as “Ponyo,” “Spirited Away” and “Princess Mononoke” was apparently dissatisfied with his recent short CG film, “Kemushi no Boro” (Boro the Caterpillar) and decided instead to turn it into a full-length film.
The news of the master’s return has not been confirmed, but if reports are true, the film will no doubt be greenlit. “Kemushi no Boro” was supposed to be a short film for the Ghibli Museum in Tokyo that showcases artifacts from Studio Ghibli, co-founded by Miyazaki. According to reports, “Kemushi no Boro,” the story of a tiny, hairy caterpiller so small it could “be easily squished between your fingers,” (Miyazaki’s words), has been in development for 20 years. There is no timeline for the finished product, but the report stated that the 75-year-old might be 80 before it is finished.