Culture
Cannes 2024 – Studio Ghibli, Honorary Palme d’Or
Sunday April 21, 2024 – 9:27 p.m.
Neila Driss
Cannes 2024 – Studio Ghibli, Honorary Palme d’Or
The 77th Cannes Film Festival, an unmissable event for world cinema, announces historic recognition by honoring a legendary institution: Studio Ghibli. For the first time in its illustrious history, the Honorary Palme d’Or becomes a collective prize, awarded to this bastion of Japanese animation which has marked four decades of cinematographic creation.
Founded forty years ago by Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata and Toshio Suzuki, Studio Ghibli quickly established itself as an essential reference, offering animated films as captivating for children as for adults. Toshio Suzuki, co-founder of Studio Ghibli, expresses his gratitude, saying: “ I am truly honored and happy that the studio received the Honorary Palme d’Or. Forty years ago, we created Studio Ghibli with the desire to deliver high-level, high-quality animated films. Today, we are delighted to see that our films are reaching a global audience, and that our world is being explored at the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka and Ghibli Park. »
The Cannes Festival, through its President, Iris Knobloch, and its General Delegate, Thierry Frémaux, celebrates an emblematic institution of cinema. “ With Ghibli, Japanese animated cinema is experienced as one of the great adventures of cinephilia, between tradition and modernity », They declare, emphasizing the importance of this recognition for a genre that has long been underestimated.
The history of animated cinema in Cannes dates back to the first years of the festival, with the presentation of Disney short films from 1946 and the screening of Dumbo in 1947. Since then, animation has had its ups and downs on the Croisette, with successes such as Shrek And Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocencebut also more intimate works like Persepolis And The Red Turtlethe latter marking Studios Ghibli’s first collaboration with a European production, presented in the Un Certain Regard section in 2016.
Studio Ghibli has captured the hearts of the public since its beginnings, with iconic works such as My Neighbor Totoro And The Grave of the Firefliesreleased simultaneously in 1988. Over four decades, the studio produced more than twenty feature films, exploring themes ranging from nature to the human condition, including poetry and adventure.
Studio Ghibli’s achievements have received numerous awards, including the Golden Bear and the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for Spirited away. These films have also left their mark on the minds of moviegoers around the world, becoming essential references for animators and movie fans.
In recognition of its major influence on animated cinema, Studio Ghibli sees its universe celebrated beyond the screen, with the opening of the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka in 2001 and Ghibli Park in 2022, offering visitors the possibility of diving into the sets of their favorite films.
The 77th Cannes Film Festival, scheduled for May 14 to 25, 2024, marks a turning point in the history of animation by honoring Studio Ghibli, whose work continues to inspire and captivate audiences around the world.
Neila Driss
