To coincide with the opening of Ghibli Park’s first three areas – Hill of Youth, Ghibli’s Large Warehouse and the Dondoko Forest – on November 1, fans will be able to get a full picture of the park’s creative development at the Ghibli Park & Ghibli Exhibition.
The exhibition takes place at the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art in Nagoya from October 29 to December 25 and looks at the creative process of Ghibli Park’s development. On display will be numerous documents and models as well as sketches by Goro Miyazaki, one of the Ghibli Park directors and the son of Studio Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki.
Exhibition highlights
The first thing you’ll come across is the iconic Cat Bus from the film ‘My Neighbor Totoro’ (1988). Good news: both kids and adults are allowed to hop into the quirky vehicle.
Just like Ghibli’s Large Warehouse, the Ghibli Park & Ghibli Exhibition features a recreation of Yubaba's office, the greedy witch and main antagonist from the Oscar-winning ‘Spirited Away’ (2001).
The Warehouse at the Ghibli Park will also be home to an interactive exhibition featuring life-sized recreations of pivotal scenes from famous Ghibli movies. The Ghibli Park & Ghibli Exhibition, on the other hand, has one of them on display. Here you can take on the role of Chihiro, the main protagonist in ‘Spirited Away’, and go on a train ride together with No-Face.
The Hill of Youth area is partially modelled after the Ghibli classic ‘Whisper of the Heart’ (1995), which is known for its mysterious cat character Baron. The exhibition will unveil character sketches and prototype models to showcase how the movie’s famous cat-shaped doll came to life.
Ghibli Park’s Valley of the Witches, scheduled to open in March 2024, will feature a recreation of Howl’s Castle, known from the movie ‘Howl's Moving Castle’ (2004). At the exhibition you can see different sketches and models that led to the construction of this iconic structure.
The home of Satsuki and Mei from the film ‘My Neighbor Totoro’ (1988) is part of Ghibli Park’s Dondoko Forest. It was originally built as a pavilion for the Expo 2005 Aichi under the direction of Goro Miyazaki. At the Ghibli Park & Ghibli Exhibition you can see a 1:5-scale model of the building as well as plenty of interior photos.
In addition, there’s a recreation of the wooden pergola that’s attached to the house. (The OK symbol means you'll be able to take photos of these models.)
You can learn about the differences between 2D and 3D animation, too. Director Goro Miyazaki explains how Studio Ghibli's 3D animations are created, referring to the background art and food animations of his 2020 movie ‘Earwig and the Witch’.
As with every exhibition here in Japan, you’ll find a gift shop with a host of exhibition-exclusive merchandise. Shop for Ghibli-themed hand towels (¥1,100), stickers (¥550 each), bandanas (¥1,430) and more.
How to get tickets
Tickets are priced at ¥1,700 (Sat, Sun & hols ¥1,900) for adults, ¥1,100 (¥1,300) for high school and university students, and ¥600 (¥800) for junior high and primary school students. We recommend getting your timed tickets in advance online or at the ticket machines in every Lawson and Ministop convenience store.
If you can’t make it to the Ghibli Park & Ghibli Exhibition in Nagoya, you still have a chance to visit the exhibition when it travels to Kumamoto, Kobe and Yamaguchi in 2023. For more information, see the exhibition website (in Japanese only).
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