Cinematic Point Of View

Happy Birthday Hayao Miyazaki! It’s hard to believe he turns 84 today!

Another thing that’s hard for me to believe is that in all my deep dives I’ve somehow never heard of Yuki’s Sun, Miyazaki’s very first short film. You can watch the short below.

From what I understand, this was a pilot, based on a manga by Tetsuya Chiba, for a 1972 television series that was never produced. Miyazaki served as the key animator and storyboard artist for this project while working at A Production (now Shin-Ei Animation).

While this short is only 5 minutes long it manages to still give us an early glimpse at Miyazaki’s favorite themes of resilience, hope, and community.

Happy 84th Birthday Hayao! You are the gift that just keeps on giving. Here’s to enjoying many, many more years of Miyazaki magic.