Studio Ghibli Short: Old Japanese Scroll Animated

Studio Ghibli, while recently quiet, have not been resting on their laurels. This week the Marubeni Shin Denryoku energy company has released an animated commercial using the studio’s talents.

The animation is based on the Choju Jinbutsu Giga, a collection of four picture scrolls created in the 12th and 13th centuries. The scrolls are widely credited as being the first examples of Japanese manga. This being the case, it seems only fitting that Studio Ghibli, a studio renowned for its animation and story-telling, be the one to breathe life into this artefact.

The scroll was chosen for its emphasis on nature and shows several animals interacting with each other surrounded by a beautiful landscape. While the sequence is just 30 seconds long and the only scroll to get the Ghibli treatment, the way the paper and ink imagery has been translated to moving image is well worth watching.

Although it’s been some time since we’ve seen the last Ghibli film in theatres, it’s good to see their animators still hard at work and putting out quality content.

Check out the commercial below.