The Boy and the Heron
The Boy and the Heron The Boy and the Heron

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  • Toshio Suzuki on Hayao Miyazaki & the Future of Animation

    From Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. Winner of the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture - Animated. Academy Award nominee for Best Animated Feature.

  • Scene at The Academy

    After losing his mother, Mahito moves to the country with his father and new stepmother, Natsuko, and encounters a mysterious gray heron. When Natsuko suddenly goes missing, Mahito, guided by the heron, must find her by venturing into a dream-like realm where the living and the dead coexist.

  • Kenshi Yonezu & Masaki Suda on working with Hayao Miyazaki

    Listen to Kenshi Yonezu, composer of THE BOY AND THE HERON theme song "Spinning Globe," and Masaki Suda, Japanese voice of the Gray Heron, discuss their process in this interview!

  • Joe Hisaishi on the Piano

    Hayao Miyazaki's first feature film in 10 years, The Boy and the Heron is a hand-drawn, original story written and directed by the Academy Award®-winning director. Produced by Studio Ghibli co-founder Toshio Suzuki, the film features a musical score from Miyazaki's long-time collaborator Joe Hisaishi. The theme song for the film "Spinning Globe" was penned and performed by global J-pop superstar Kenshi Yonezu.

  • Guillermo del Toro on Hayao Miyazaki's THE BOY AND THE HERON | From Studio 9

    Guillermo del Toro joined us during #TIFF23 to talk about Hayao Miyazaki's latest film The Boy and the Heron.

    Already acclaimed as a masterpiece in Japan, Hayao Miyazaki’s new film begins as a simple story of loss and love, and rises to become a staggering work of imagination.

About

After losing his mother during the war, young Mahito moves to his family's estate in the countryside. There, a series of mysterious events lead him to a secluded and ancient tower, home to a mischievous gray heron. When Mahito’s new stepmother disappears, he follows the gray heron into the tower, and enters a fantastic world shared by the living and the dead. As he embarks on an epic journey with the heron as his guide, Mahito must uncover the secrets of this world, and the truth about himself. Featuring the voices of Christian Bale, Dave Bautista, Gemma Chan, Willem Dafoe, Karen Fukuhara, Mark Hamill, Robert Pattinson and Florence Pugh.

The Boy and the Heron is the new critically-acclaimed fantasy adventure from the legendary Studio Ghibli, creators of Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, and My Neighbor Totoro. Hayao Miyazaki’s first feature film in 10 years is a hand-drawn, original story written and directed by the Academy Award®️-winning director. Produced by Studio Ghibli co-founder Toshio Suzuki, the film features a musical score from Miyazaki’s long-time collaborator Joe Hisaishi. The theme song for the film “Spinning Globe” was penned and performed by global J-pop superstar Kenshi Yonezu.

  • Academy Award® Nominee - Best Animated Feature
  • Winner - Best Motion Picture - Animated - Golden Globe Awards
  • Winner - Best Animated Film - BAFTA Film Awards
  • Winner - Best Animated Film - Los Angeles Film Critics Association
  • Winner - Best Animated Film - New York Film Critics Circle Awards
  • Nominee - Best Animated Feature - Producers Guild Awards
  • Nominee - Outstanding Original Score for a Studio Film - Society of Composers and Lyricists
  • Nominee - Best Motion Picture - Animated - Cinema Audio Society Awards
  • Nominee - Best Animated Feature Film - Art Directors Guild Awards
  • 7 Nominations - ASIFA-Hollywood - Annie Awards
  • Winner - Best Animated Film - Boston Society of Film Critics
  • Winner - Best Animated Film - Chicago Film Critics Association
  • Winner - Best Animated Film - Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association
  • Winner - Best Picture / Best Animated Film / Best Score - Florida Film Critics Circle
  • Winner - Best Animated Film - Greater Western New York Film Critics Association
  • Winner - Best International Filmmaker - Hollywood Creative Alliance
  • Winner - Best Foreign Film / Best Animated Film - Philadelphia Film Critics Circle
  • Winner - Best Animated Film - San Diego Film Critics Society
  • Top 10 Films - National Board of Review
  • Nominee - Best Original Score - Golden Globe Awards
  • Nominee - Best Animated Film - Critic's Choice Awards

English Cast

Shoichi Maki Christian Bale
The Parakeet King Dave Bautista
Natsuko Gemma Chan
Noble Pelican Willem Dafoe
Lady Himi Karen Fukuhara
Granduncle Mark Hamill
Gray Heron Robert Pattinson
Kiriko Florence Pugh
Mahito Maki Luca Padovan
The Parakeets Mamoudou Athie
Tony Revolori
Dan Stevens

Japanese Cast

Mahito Maki Soma Santoki
Gray Heron Masaki Suda
Kiriko Ko Shibasaki
Lady Himi AIMYON
Natsuko Yoshino Kimura
Shoichi Maki Takuya Kimura
Izumi Keiko Takeshita
Utako Jun Fubuki
Eriko Sawako Agawa
Warawara Karen Takizawa
Aiko Shinobu Otake
The Parakeet King Jun Kunimura
Noble Pelican Kaoru Kobayashi
Granduncle Shohei Hino

Available Screenings

Press

Photo by Nicolas Guérin

Hayao Miyazaki Writer, Director

Born in 1941 in Tokyo, Japan. Miyazaki co-founded Studio Ghibli in 1985 with Isao Takahata. Among his eleven animated features, Spirited Away (2001) broke every box office record in Japan, and won the Golden Bear at the 2002 Berlin International Film Festival and the 2002 Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature Film. Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) received the Osella Award at the 2004 Venice International Film Festival. Miyazaki was awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 2005 Venice International Film Festival. The Wind Rises (2013) was nominated for the 2013 Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature. In 2014, the Board of Governors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented him with an Honorary Oscar® for Lifetime Achievement.

Photo by Katsuhide Morimoto

Joe Hisaishi Original Score

Born in Nagano, Japan, he started to show his interest in minimal music when he was a student at Kunitachi College of Music and started his career as a contemporary music composer. The presentation of his composition “MKWAJU” in 1981 and the release of his first album “Information” in the subsequent year marked the kickoff of his prolific career as a solo artist. Since then, he has released nearly 40 solo albums. In February of 2020, he global released a collection album entitled “Dream Songs: The Essential Joe Hisaishi” on Decca Gold in co-operation with UMG Japan.

Hisaishi has produced the music for 12 films by director Hayao Miyazaki, including My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away, and continues to tour the music worldwide through his production ‘Joe Hisaishi Symphonic Concert: Music from the Studio Ghibli Films of Hayao Miyazaki’.

He signed the contract with Deutcshe Grammophon 2022 and released an album “Symphonic Celebration,” featuring a new recording of the music from Hayao Miyazaki films with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London, which won the 1st prize in the classical category in US Billboard chart twice in 2023. Joe Hisaishi is actively touring, and will have concerts throughout the U.S. in 2024.

Photo by Kazuhei Kimura

Kenshi Yonezu Theme Song

After posting a series of Vocaloid tracks under the moniker Hachi, Kenshi Yonezu distinguished himself from the crowd with remarkable results. He later began releasing material under his real name Kenshi Yonezu, in 2012. He has since gained wide-known recognition as a multi-talented creative, not only for his music but also for his album cover illustrations and music productions. “KICK BACK,” the opening theme to the anime series ​Chainsaw Man​, entered Spotify's Global Top 50, a first-ever by a Japanese artist. In 2023, Yonezu wrote “LADY” for the TV commercial of “Georgia” coffee product line, followed by “Moongazing,” as the theme song of the action role-playing game ​FINAL FANTASY XVI​. Written and performed by Kenshi Yonezu, “Spinning Globe” is the theme song for Hayao Miyazaki's The Boy and the Heron.

Listen to the track below or at your preferred streaming service here.

© 2023 Studio Ghibli