RIP, Takahata-San (1935-2018)

On April 5th, 2018, after a year-long battle with lung cancer, legendary anime director Isao Takahata passed away at the age of 82. When I heard this, I was immediately saddened, yet had little-to-no-time to let his death sink in. For one, I'd recently arrived home from an exhausting shift at work, so I had no energy to really process this. And two, the second-half of the Passover holidays was 2 hours away, so even if it sunk in I'd be preoccupied for the next two days. Add the recent dossier from Channel Awesome producers alleging abuse, as well as the announcement that Infinite Rainy Day, a site I'd poured 4 years of my life into, was closing up shop, and Takahata's death became the third most-depressing event that week.

My decision to post this on The Whitly-Verse wasn't exclusively because of Infinite Rainy Day's closure. While it's true that this would've been better-suited to that site, I feel that Isao Takahata is someone more people need to know about. Hayao Miyazaki is one of my favourite directors, and justifiably-so, but while knowledge of his work is more well-known in the West, Takahata's the outlier constantly overshadowed by his colleague. A crime of that nature's inexcusable.

Isao Takahata was born on October 29th, 1935. I've already written about his biography on Infinite Rainy Day, so I won't here, but his work in the field of animation predates Miyazaki by several years; in fact, the two actually became friends during the production of Takahata's directorial debut, Hols: Prince of the Sun, in 1968, and that friendship would long-outlive their time spent at Toei. Takahata would even serve as a producer on some of Miyazaki's early works at Studio Ghibli, namely Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and Castle in the Sky, before they managed to nab Toshio Suzuki in the early-90's, and the infamous decision to double-bill Takahata's Grave of the Fireflies with Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro would nearly bankrupt the company due to the emotional whiplash between films. Even when the two were at odds creatively, which happened often, there was still an irreverence they shared for one-another.

This difference in attitude could also be seen in their approach to filmmaking. Whereas Hayao Miyazaki would watch over his films like an authoritarian parent, constantly reanimating cels he wasn't happy with, Isao Takahata was more laid-back and had a great deal of trust in his artists. Whereas Miyazaki was always efficient and on-time, Takahata was notorious for being disorganized and behind schedule. Whereas Miyazaki made sure not to exceed his resources, Takahata was famous for going over budget, such that his last film, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, still holds the record as the most-expensive project the studio has worked on. Even their understanding of the animation process was different, as Takahata never animated his works directly.

Despite the constant, long-stretches of time between works, Takahata also took on the role of promoting the studio's library and acquiring foreign films to add to The Studio Ghibli Museum. His love of animation extended well-beyond anime, and he considered one of his biggest inspirations to be a French film called The King and the Mockingbird. A great collector of art, Takahata made it his mission to showcase a wide variety of Western animation to the Japanese public. To say that he succeeded is an understatement.

Speaking of films, Takahata's five contributions to Studio Ghibli, Grave of the Fireflies, Only Yesterday, Pom Poko, My Neighbors the Yamadas and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, were all shining examples of how flexible animation truly was. For all his visionary talent, Hayao Miyazaki mostly confined himself to fantasy and whimsy. Isao Takahata, however, constantly switched-up styles and genres, and his films became progressively more artsy and fantastical as his career progressed. This can be seen with the sharp contrast between Grave of the Fireflies's grounded realism and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya's stylistic abstractness. Regardless, all five of his Studio Ghibli efforts were highlights in his long-standing career, exemplifying some of the best anime had to offer.

This even allowed me to see past his filmmaking flaws. I have a hit-or-miss relationship with Takahata's body of work, frequently finding it slow and arduous, which I've made known numerous times on Infinite Rainy Day and Twitter. One of his works, My Neighbors the Yamadas, I don't even like, considering it to be Studio Ghibli's worst sans Tales From Earthsea. But even at the worst of times, I respected what Takahata was going for, appreciating his style regardless of outcome. That alone is worthy of adoration.

Takahata's body of work is also one that more people should've paid attention to while he was alive. Whereas Miyazaki amassed several trophies and awards, including two Oscars at The Academy Awards, Takahata was less appreciated, with only his final film, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, receiving a Best Animated Feature nod in 2015 (and subsequently losing to Big Hero 6). It's a real travesty, as Takahata deserved better than he got. But if you want further venting on that matter, ask someone who's a bigger fan of anime than I am.

In the end, what matters is that, like I said, Isao Takahata's work deserves far more recognition. So I suggest searching for one of his films, tracking it down and watching it in his memory. I've seen his Studio Ghibli works several times, but going back further will reveal even more gems. Either way, rest in peace, Takahata-san. May your work serve as inspiration for many future animators…