Studio Ghibli films mean a lot to many people. From My Neighbor Totoro to Spirited Away, if you're into magical fantasy adventures, there is probably a film for you in the studio's catalogue of incredible animation. However, during Japanese lockdowns, the Studio Ghibli museum located a little out of Tokyo has suffered, and was forced to turn to crowdfunding to support itself.
The Studio Ghibli Museum - located in Mitaka, to the west of central Tokyo - needed to ask fans for funds to cover maintenance fees, in order to keep the place in operation. As Kotaku and ANN report, although the museum had received funds from the city of Mitaka itself, it needed more help to keep everything in order, and opened a crowdfunding drive for the people of Japan.
The museum asked for donations of 5000 yen (about £33) as they could be tax write-offs and keep costs down for everyone. Though they originally only requested 10,000,000 yen (a little under £70,000), fans in Japan flocked to the page to help support the museum. And now, with 196 days left on the campaign, the page has raised over 23,000,000 yen (£150,000k).
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It's so nice to see fans helping support projects they love, especially after COVID-19 has decimated so much tourism and services the world over. This way, the Studio Ghibli museum will continue to entertain and educate fans of all ages for years to come - and hopefully, when things open back up it'll look better than ever.
The museum hosts a variety of activities and even looks like a location in one of the animated films. It's colourful and bright, and Hayao Miyazaki himself said he wanted it to be "a museum that is interesting and which relaxes the soul" while making everyone who enters feel welcome and treated with respect. The institution even has its own short animated piece which can only be found in its theatre - so the building, its famous Catbus, and the history there being saved was incredibly important.
Thank you to the Japanese Studio Ghibli fans who contributed to the cause so that we all may one day enjoy the sights of the museum ourselves.
Featured Image Credit: Studio Ghibli