Movies in the classroom - animation by Hayao Miyazaki

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  • April 2, 2007 at 4:31 am #5478
    Rob_Hugo@PortNW
    Keymaster

    I just wanted to ask if anyone has used any of Hayao Miyazaki's excellent animated movies in class? The students love them -and they truly are wonderful. My favorites include "Spirited Away", which is almost dreamlike in the way the story - and the bath-house it takes place in - open up and take on new dimensions.

    Turner Classic Movies had a retrospective of Miyazaki's work and his movies are all well out of the ordinary (my only criticism is that they can tend to peter out plotwise, as the animator creates by producing hundreds of storyboard illustrations that he lets grow organically - in Japan, his drawings are often put together into books and they fly off the shelves like rice cakes).

    Given the increasing popularity of anime and Japanese cartoon books amongst all levels of middle and high school, I'd love to be able to incorporate them into teaching the curriculum (instead of having to confiscate them in class!).

    Ray

    April 2, 2007 at 5:04 am #32894
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Here's a list of Miyazaki's movies:

    1984 Nausicaa of the Valley Wind
    1986 Laputa: Castle in the Sky
    1988 My Neighbor Totoro
    1989 Kiki's Delivery Service
    1992 Porco Rosso (The Crimson Pig)
    1995 If You Listen Closely (or Whisper of the Heart)
    1997 Princess Monoke
    2001 Spirited Away
    2004 Howl's Moving Castle
    2006 three shorts:
    Mizugumo monmon
    Hoshi wo katta hi
    Yadosagashi
    2008 release Gake no ue no Ponyo (Ponoyo on a Cliff)

    They often have a strong environementally responsible theme and strong female characters (of all ages)

    Ray[Edit by="rrobinson on Apr 3, 7:50:53 AM"][/Edit]

    April 17, 2007 at 1:02 am #32895
    Anonymous
    Guest

    I always show at least one miyazaki film to my class in the year.

    I believe that they need that, a rich cultural education. I have used several different ones in my classroom. I use them to teach the plot pyramid and character development. They love the mystical parts of them. Over all the ones I have shown they enjoyed Castle in the sky the most.

    It has a beautiful story and rich meaning. The idea that great power does not bring great happiness and sometimes we are better off not trying to control things and let nature take its true course. Rather daoist in some ways I presume.

    All his films are rich in nature, spirit, and a true lesson which is very hard to find in most of today's media and film.

    I highly recommend everyone looking into his work. They are great!!!

    The draw back is they tend to be long and have moments of slowness. But most have really good action scenes as well.

    Lisa

    April 17, 2007 at 3:01 am #32896
    Anonymous
    Guest

    I used Spirited Away once in my classroom to show students about modernization and a little bit on religion and traditional values. In the movie, the river spirit/dragon Haku becomes a lost spirit because society has paved over his river in order to build an apartment or structure. In the beginning of the movie, there are alters for spirits and small Shinto gates scattered throughout the side of the roads.

    Although it is very different from what my students usually watch, they enjoyed the story and were able to pick up on other themes portrayed.[Edit by="ssamel on Apr 17, 10:04:28 AM"]On modernization, Pom Pocco is a good one, too--but it might be too risque for the younger audiences. When I had 10th grade modern world history students, I showed clips of Grave of the Fireflies. That was a pretty good one to show on the bombings in Japan.[/Edit]

    April 17, 2007 at 7:18 am #32897
    Anonymous
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    After reading the suggestions on this post I decided to use "Spirited Away" in my Mass Media foreign film class.

    I hadn't watched it, so my first experience was in the classroom along with my students. I was TOTALLY blown away by it. I ended up continuing the film into nutrition and my conference period because I couldn't turn it off.

    The film has a magic quality that truly transfixes the viewer. I've already purchased it and plan on using it from here on out. The students loved it too - I've never seen a class so captivated.

    Definately watch this film if you haven't already!

    July 23, 2007 at 6:46 pm #32898
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Though tragic, Miyazaki's Hotare no Hakka (Grave of the Fireflies) offers a Japanese view of WW2 on the homefront. The American bombing, the children orphaned, the food shortages, the children fighting to survive. It is both illuminating and tragic.

    It also gives no view of the fascist government running the country. There are no Kempeitai (secret police/homeland security forces) stirring up political fervor. Japanese all look like victims, not the nationalists that started the Asia-Pacific War.

    Still, the experiences the children have are relations of what real people went through, fascist or innocent. For that alone, the movie is worth it. Just be sure the students know the "rest of the story".

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