RIP Isao Takahata

Today at the age of 82, Isao Takahata has died.  He was a Japanese animator and director and was most known for a movie called Grave of the Fireflies, but to me his life had greater significance as one of the co-founders of Studio Ghibli alongside Hayao Miyazaki, Toshio Suzuki, and Yasuyoshi Tokuma.

It wasn't until 2007 that I first became aware of Studio Ghibli, with the first title that I saw being Spirited Away.  I was rather late to the party at the time, it was a close friend that first introduced me to these movies.  What appealed to me most was the distinctive art style, and the greater focus on story telling and the empathic connection between the viewer and the characters on screen.  To me animation had always been something to observe, with a few exceptions I never got too invested in the emotion and the depth of the story being told, mostly because it failed to capture my imagination.  Studio Ghibli was the first time in my life that animation became an art form, up until that point it had always been entertainment to me, nothing more.  Studio Ghibli changed that however, the composition, the craft, the beauty that was embodied within the work was such that it felt at any moment you could pause the movie and that scene alone would stand as a work of art.  There are many cinematic works that can claim such brilliance.

I feel saddened by Isao Takahata's passing, and I am in no doubt he will be missed by many.  Studio Ghibli will not be the same without him.  May he Rest In Peace and may his legacy live on.  If you have not experienced Studio Ghibli before please explore the collection, you won't be disappointed.  In honour of Isao Takahata, I recommend starting with Grave of the Fireflies, you may need some tissues to hand however as it was one of the most heartbreaking animations I've ever seen.