It’s good to have problems, Hayao Miyazaki tells Studio Ghibli staff

Morning message to animation house’s artists is a bite-sized dose of Miyazaki philosophy.

Given the consistently excellent quality and clearly distinct style of the studio, it’s almost tempting to think that it’s easy for Ghibli to produce amazing anime films. Not only does it employ some of the most talented artists in the world, Ghibli’s track record of box office hits now lets it essentially spend as long as it wants to on a production, since it’s pretty much a certainty that the resulting rave reviews and towering ticket sales will make the time and resource investment more than worth it, especially for projects helmed by legendary director Hayao Miyazaki.

Being free from many of the deadline and budget pressures many other anime studios operate under doesn’t mean Ghibli’s staff has things easy, though. It’s also an animation house with the highest of internal standards, and reaching for those heights is always going to come with plenty of challenges and difficulties.

So last Monday morning Miyazaki himself had some words of wisdom for the Ghibli staff, which the studio then shared through its official Twitter account.

“Here’s what Miyazaki-san said to the staff this morning:

‘It’s OK to have a problem you’re struggling with. When you’re really, really struggling, that’s when a new idea will pop out. Struggling is a kind of talent.’”

今朝、宮崎さんがスタッフにかけていた言葉です。「困っていいんです。とことん困ると、何か新しいものが出てきます。困るというのも才能なんです」 pic.twitter.com/wQtCDK8L3G

— スタジオジブリ STUDIO GHIBLI (@JP_GHIBLI) August 22, 2022

The veteran Ghibli boss’ words struck a chord with Japanese Twitter commenters, who’ve reacted with:

“Deep.”
“Very Miyazaki-esque.”
“Putting that idea into my mind.”
“I wish I had a boss like him.”
“Hearing Miyazaki say that gives me a positive feeling even about my troubles.”
“Exactly what I need to hear these days.”
“With all that’s been going on recently, hearing Miyazaki say that makes me feel like things are going to turn out all right.”
“It’s important to keep a positive attitude even when thinking about problems. That’s when some really good ideas are born.”
“I like how there’s a pencil in the photo that’s taped together.”

Like the last comment says, sure enough there’s a sky-blue colored pencil in the middle of the photo that looks to have snapped or cracked before being repaired with a tape wrapping. While it’s possibly a coincidence (Miyazaki does have a strong attachment to his preferred tools of the trade), it’s a great visual metaphor for the philosophy that things won’t always go smoothly, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find a way to overcome the problem and start moving forward again.

Source: Twitter/@JP_GHIBLI
Top image: Studio Ghibli
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