Our dreams of fully-immersing ourselves into the magical realms found in Studio Ghibli films are set to become a reality. A Studio Ghibli theme park is set to be built in Japan.
Per Variety, Studio Ghibli will partner with the government of Aichi Prefecture and the Chunichi Shimbun newspaper to develop the park. It is set to live within Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park, locate near Nagoya in central Japan.
The park is set to open in 2022. It will reportedly feature five themed areas. So far, it has been confirmed that two of the areas will be based on 2004’s Howl’s Moving Castle and another on 1998’s Princess Mononoke. There’s been no word yet as to what we can expect the other areas of the park to explore. I’m praying for a Spirited Away-themed buffet. Something about the way those voluptuous dumplings oozed with sauce has been burned into my subconscious forever.
In a press conference, Studio Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki shared that Ghibli mastermind Hayao Miyazaki is working on the park’s creative side. “[Miyazaki] can’t leave anything up to other people. He’s a meddlesome old man,” he shared.. “[He] is not the type to look on supportively from a distance. He starts in right away with ‘do this’ and ‘don’t do that.'”
Check out the trailer for the Studio Ghibli masterpiece My Neighbour Totoro
