A Month of Miyazaki, 14 Years Later

In March of 2006, as a celebration for Hayao Miyazaki’s 65th birth year, Toonami, the legendary action anime block on Cartoon Network, hosted a month-long event every Saturday night for four weeks where they’d highlight four of his movies. 

Event streaming a director’s filmography isn’t a new phenomenon. Turner Classic Movies, a channel dedicated to what its name implies, does that frequently. Even streaming Hayao Miyazaki movies in honour of his 65th birthday had been done by TCM earlier that year, with the moments between films featuring a conversation with John Lasseter. But what made Toonami’s event unique was the target audience. Whereas TCM’s marathon was aimed at general audiences, A Month of Miyazaki was for anime fans. More specifically, it was for fans who enjoyed the endless reruns of Dragon Ball Z. As such, this was a real treat.

Of course, being Toonami, the advertising had to reflect the target demographic. Miyazaki’s body of work consists of a variety of movies, but Toonami wanted action films. They also wanted action films in-line with their standard offerings. As such, they ended up with their four finalists: Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Castle in the Sky and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. And they promoted these films with some of their best bumpers.

It’s worth noting two points: first, I didn’t grow up with A Month of Miyazaki. Aside from living in Canada, hence we didn’t get Cartoon Network, I had no clue who Hayao Miyazaki was until 2010. I, therefore, have no childhood nostalgia to speak of. So when I point out my thoughts, they’re all coming from a post-facto reflection. It might diminish them slightly, but it’s worth keeping in mind. 

Second, and this wasn’t planned, these four movies happen to also be my favourites from Miyazaki. In the case of Spirited Away specifically, it’s my favourite movie of all-time. The other three fit in nicely: they were discussed in detail Infinite Rainy Day. Yet Spirited Away isn’t an action movie, even if it’s amazing. But I guess the block needed one more pick, so they went with the Oscar winner.

The most-striking part about A Month of Miyazaki was the production value. Toonami was always able to skirt around budget restrictions, providing excellent promos and bumpers despite their cheaply-rendered, CGI stock footage, but this in particular stood out. Whether it was the excellently-cut images from the promos, the baritone narration that got people pumped, or Chris Devoe’s remixes of the movies’ tunes, people were in for a treat. The promos even used those paper cut-outs from Spirited Away as the official mascot. Essentially, they meant business here.

I can’t stress how cool this would’ve been had I lived in The US. I was a few months away from my 16th birthday at the time, and my tastes in entertainment were becoming more edgy. I wanted films that were action-packed and cool, so this would’ve been a perfect fit. Plus, these were foreign films. Add in that all four movies hold up now, and the deck was stacked in my favour. But, sadly, it wasn’t meant to be for me. 

In terms of legacy, I think it was pretty obvious. Ignoring how Toonami was struggling at this point, for a variety of reasons I won’t discuss right now, A Month of Miyazaki showed how the block could cater to diverse interests. I know people who are pathologically-averse to anime, yet don’t mind Miyazaki movies. Having these movies syndicate for a month was an excellent way to cater to them while also appealing to the converted. It also allowed for younger anime fans to experience them for the first time, which was a bonus.

Can A Month of Miyazaki work today? Maybe, and maybe not. On one hand, licensing Studio Ghibli’s work for TV’s expensive, and modern-Toonami’s demographic’s a little on the old side for these movies (save Princess Mononoke. That could still work.) Plus, with the advent of streaming, like Netflix and HBO Max, this wouldn’t catch on to the same extent; after all, why bother when you can watch these movies for no extra cost? And without commercials/time constraints?

On the other hand, it’s not like this couldn’t work at all. For one, the Disney-Studio Ghibli deal ended in 2012, so they’re not tied down to a specific licensor. And two, Miyazaki’s directed two movies since then, soon to be three. Who’s to say it couldn’t be tried again in honour of his 80th birthday this January? And who’s to say it has to be the same movies, let-alone from his body of work? Anything’s possible! 

Regardless, the legacy of A Month of Miyazaki remains clear: it was a cool experiment and treat for anime fans. Did it save Toonami from going under for a while? No, as evidenced by them ceasing broadcasting for a few years later. But it was a highlight nonetheless. Traverse the online anime community long enough, and you’ll find people who got into Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli through A Month of Miyazaki. Like TCM’s event for adults, this was huge for kids and teenagers!

Personally? It was a few years before I knew of Hayao Miyazaki. But I’ve more than made up for that since!