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The company's logo features the character Totoro from Hayao Miyazaki's film My Neighbor Totoro.

Several anime features created by Studio Ghibli have won the Animage Anime Grand Prix award including Laputa: Castle in the Sky in 1986, My Neighbor Totoro in 1988, and Kiki's Delivery Service in 1989. In 2002, Spirited Away won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature, the first anime film to win an Academy Award.

Though the Italian word is pronounced with a hard /ɡ/, the Japanese pronunciation of the studio's name is with a soft g, [dʑíbɯɽi] . The theory behind the name was that the studio was blowing a new wind into the Japanese anime industry.

History

Founded in 1985, the studio is headed by the acclaimed director Hayao Miyazaki along with his faithful companion Isao Takahata, as well as the studio's executive managing director and long-time producer Toshio Suzuki. Its origins date back to 1984, with the film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, which was popularized as a serialized manga in a publication of Tokuma Shoten's Animage magazine after the original screenplay was rejected. The film was eventually produced by Topcraft and the film's success spurred the formation of Ghibli. Much of Ghibli's works are distributed in Japan by the noted film distributor Toho. Tokuma is the parent company of Studio Ghibli, and it has provided the Walt Disney Company with the video rights to all of Ghibli's output that did not have previous international distribution, including the global, non-Japan distribution rights to Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away. Miyazaki's film, Howl's Moving Castle, was based on a book by British author Diana Wynne Jones, published in several countries including Canada and the United States. Composer Joe Hisaishi has provided the soundtrack for all of Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli films.

The most famous and lauded film from the studio that was not directed by Miyazaki is Grave of the Fireflies, directed by Isao Takahata, a film focusing on the lives of two war orphans towards the end of the Second World War in Japan.

Over the years, there has been a close relationship between Studio Ghibli and the magazine Animage, which regularly runs exclusive articles about the studio and its members in a section titled "Ghibli Notes." Artwork from Ghibli's films and other works frequently graces the cover of the magazine.

The company is well-known for its strict "no-edits" policy in licensing their films abroad. This was a result of the dubbing of Miyazaki's Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind when the film was released in the United States as Warriors of the Wind. The film was heavily edited and americanized, with significant portions cut and the plot rewritten. The "no cuts" policy was highlighted when Miramax co-chairman Harvey Weinstein suggested editing Princess Mononoke to make it more marketable. In response, a Studio Ghibli producer sent an authentic katana with a simple message: "No cuts".

Miyazaki's latest film, Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea, was released in Japan on July 19, 2008.

On February 1, 2008, Toshio Suzuki stepped down from the position of Studio Ghibli president which he held since 2005, and Koji Hoshino (former president of Walt Disney Japan) took over. Suzuki said he wanted to improve films with his own hands as a producer, rather than demanding this from his employees. He has revealed that Takahata and Goro Miyazaki (director of Tales from Earthsea and Hayao's son) are developing projects for release after Hayao Miyazaki's Ponyo. Suzuki decided to hand over the presidency to Hoshino because Hoshino has helped Studio Ghibli sell its videos since 1996, as well as helped to release the Princess Mononoke film in the United States.

Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro 1979 December 15 Hayao Miyazaki
(released before the formation of Studio Ghibli)
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind 1984 March 11 Hayao Miyazaki
(released before the formation of Studio Ghibli)
Laputa: Castle in the Sky 1986 August 2 Hayao Miyazaki
Grave of the Fireflies 1988 April 16 Isao Takahata
(shown alongside My Neighbor Totoro)
My Neighbor Totoro 1988 April 16 Hayao Miyazaki
(shown alongside Grave of the Fireflies)
Kiki's Delivery Service 1989 July 29 Hayao Miyazaki
Only Yesterday 1991 July 20 Isao Takahata
Porco Rosso 1992 July 18 Hayao Miyazaki
I Can Hear the Sea 1993 May 5 Tomomi Mochizuki
(made-for-TV; also known as Ocean Waves)
Pom Poko 1994 July 16 Isao Takahata
Whisper of the Heart 1995 July 15 Yoshifumi Kondo
Princess Mononoke 1997 July 12 Hayao Miyazaki
My Neighbors the Yamadas 1999 July 17 Isao Takahata
Spirited Away 2001 July 27 Hayao Miyazaki
The Cat Returns 2002 July 20 Hiroyuki Morita
Howl's Moving Castle 2004 November 20 Hayao Miyazaki
Tales from Earthsea 2006 July 29 Gorō Miyazaki
Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea 2008 July 19 Hayao Miyazaki
Kerou's Rebellion Summer 2010 Isao Takahata