Studio Ghibli Museum in Tokyo

The Studio Ghibli Anime Museum in Tokyo is dedicated to the world famous anime produced by Studio Ghibli. It is located in the city of Mitaka, in the west of Inokashira Park (Tokyo Prefecture), and is a small fairy-tale house. The opening took place in October 2001. Hayao Miyazaki, one of the two founders of the studio created in 1985, developed the design and interior of the museum.

History of creation

The idea to create the Studio Ghibli Museum in Tokyo arose in 1998. The appearance of the museum was influenced by the legendary animator's impression of European architecture. He made the project in a very original way - in the form of sketches, which he usually draws when creating films. For example, a map is printed in the booklets that are handed to guests at the entrance. Miyazaki made her sketch in the summer of 1999. The famous animator believes that in the anime museum the soul rests, and it should be carefully studied.

Purchase tickets

Purchasing entrance tickets to the Studio Ghibli Museum in Tokyo is very unique. They can only be purchased in advance at special ticket offices that have a certificate. There are such ticket offices in Tokyo itself, in travel agencies in Europe, the United States and others. Online ticket purchases can be made promptly at 10 a.m. Tokyo time on the 10th of any month for visits in the following month. This is difficult to do in Japan itself. The Studio Ghibli Museum in Tokyo is widely popular and sells out all available tickets in less than an hour. At the entrance there is a ticket office, a sign saying “open” is posted, Totoro (the troll from the movie) is silently watching from the ticket office, but he is not selling tickets! Resellers take advantage of the shortage of tickets by raising prices tenfold.

Museum interior

Inside the institution there is a retro elevator, a bridge, and secret passages from the halls. The walls are painted with scenes from films released by the studio. Stained glass and window openings are decorated with scenes from famous anime. Even the door handles resemble those drawn in anime. You are not allowed to take photographs inside, but in the courtyard, on the roof, or on the summer veranda of the museum cafe "Straw Hat" it is not prohibited.

Where the film is born

This is the name of the permanent exhibition at the Studio Ghibli Museum in Tokyo. On the lower floor there is a hall of exhibitions dedicated to the history of the origin and development of animation. On the ground floor there is a model of an anime studio with drawings and explanatory materials. The permanent exhibition showcases the magic of making an anime film step by step. An exact copy of H. Miyazaki’s office was created for visitors.

Three Hawks

This is the name of the reading room. In Japanese it sounds like "mitaka", which is the name of the city. The hall displays publications dedicated to the history of animation and related to the studio. These are albums, books, mangas (Japanese comics). The author of some of them is Miyazaki himself. Among the books are those that are in the personal library of H. Miyazaki. You can take and read any book in the hall; they are in the public domain.

The movement begins

In the hall with this name, ancient devices for producing images in the “anime” style are demonstrated. For example, here you can get acquainted with the stroboscope and phenakistiscope. The strobe light looks like a carousel with small dolls - the heroes of the famous anime "My Neighbor Totoro". With the help of pulsating light rays, the illusion of a constant rotation of the carousel is created, and the dolls seem to come to life.

Other exposures

The Studio Ghibli Museum in Tokyo hosts several exhibitions dedicated to the activities of various anime studios. The Saturn cinema hall shows documentaries from the studio, and the interior is reminiscent of old cinema halls. There is a transparent projectionist's booth here. There are reels of film hanging on the walls, and there is an old film projector with a modern one inside. Before the film is shown, cashiers will only allow you into the hall if you have a ticket. Only one film is shown per day at each screening.

The museum has shops selling souvenirs and books related to anime themes. There is a real garden on the roof. It contains a robot from the film "Laputa Castle in the Sky". In the children's room, little guests are greeted by a life-size "cat bus". All attributes and design of the museum are associated with the characters and plots of popular animated films. Every anime lover - both adults and children - gets great pleasure when visiting the museum.