Studio Ghibli', 'Global Anime' and the Popularisation of a 'Medium- Genre'
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R Carter, Lawrence William (2018) Going 'global' 'Studio Ghibli', 'global anime' and the popularisation of a 'medium‐ genre'. PhD thesis. SOAS University of London. http://eprints.soas.ac.uk/26182 Copyright © and Moral Rights for this thesis are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non‐commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder/s. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. When referring to this thesis, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given e.g. AUTHOR (year of submission) "Full thesis title", name of the School or Department, PhD Thesis, pagination. GOING ‘GLOBAL’: ‘STUDIO GHIBLI’, ‘GLOBAL ANIME’ AND THE POPULARISATION OF A ‘MEDIUM-GENRE’ Lawrence William Carter Thesis submitted for the degree of PhD 2018 Centre for Media and Film Studies SOAS, University of London 1 DECLARATION FOR SOAS PHD THESIS I have read and understood regulation 17.9 of the Regulations for students of the SOAS, University of London concerning plagiarism. I undertake that all the material presented for examination is my own work and has not been written for me, in whole or in part, by any other person. I also undertake that any quotation or paraphrase from the published or unpublished work of another person has been duly acknowledged in the work which I present for examination. Signed: ____________________________ Date: _________________ 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The completion of this PhD would not have been possible without the support of my wife, my family, my friends, my PhD supervisor – Dr. Isolde Standish – and all of the other staff at SOAS. I would also like to thank my examiners, Dr. Rayna Denison and Professor Chris Berry, for their assistance. This work was supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council [grant number 1210119] and the Japan Foundation Endowment Committee [grant number 5500414]. 3 ABSTRACT This thesis is concerned with the Disneyfication of the last three Studio Ghibli films directed by Hayao Miyazaki and how the globalizing agent of Walt Disney Studios has transformed the paratextual marketing campaigns of these films. This thesis poses the following research questions: to what extent can we describe Howl’s Moving Castle / Hauru no ugoku shiro (Hayao Miyazaki, 2004), Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea / Gake no ue no Ponyo (Hayao Miyazaki, 2008) and The Wind Rises / Kaze tachinu (Hayao Miyazaki, 2013) as Disneyfied texts? How do the adherence of Hollywood star-images act to Disneyfy the Ghibli (para)text? How do the auteur-star and author functions involved in the re-marketing of Ghibli products contribute to the Disneyfication systemscape? Which aspects of the English-language promotional paratexts point directly to the application of Disneyfication? It is the hypothesis of this thesis that Disneyfication practices can be primarily located within the application of star-images and auteur brand-names to the promotional campaigns of the aforementioned triptych. First, this thesis assesses the various theoretical frameworks pertaining to the area of Disneyfication and how this concept relates to the case studies addressed in this thesis. Secondly, this thesis demonstrates through an overview of both animation history and global consumption trajectories the point at which Disneyfication is adhered to the Ghibli text. Next, this thesis focuses in on the specificities of Disneyfication at work by looking closely at which specific star-images and brand- names are attached to the films in order to contextualise them for a Western audience. Finally, it demonstrates how these facets combine by deconstructing key facets of the three promotional campaigns. In short, this thesis exists to examine the 4 role of Disneyfication within the late era of Studio Ghibli animation and what the implications of these effects are upon the marketing strategies deployed within the American (and global) marketplaces. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS 0. INTRODUCTION: STUDIO GHIBLI AND DISNEYFICATION .............................................. 8 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................................. 9 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................ 34 ISOLATING A CASE STUDY ................................................................................................... 67 CHAPTER OUTLINE .............................................................................................................. 70 1. CHAPTER ONE – ANIMATION: FROM CARTOONS TO ANIME .................................... 74 FIRST WAVE DISNEYFICATION ............................................................................................. 74 DEFINING ANIME ................................................................................................................ 80 ANIME AND CARTOONS AS MEDIUM-GENRES ................................................................... 86 2. CHAPTER TWO – DISTRIBUTION: THE FANTASYSCAPE AND THE SYSTEMSCAPE ....... 90 GLOBAL FLOWS ................................................................................................................... 90 CENTERS AND PERIPHERIES ................................................................................................ 93 GHIBLI GOING GLOBAL ...................................................................................................... 102 3. CHAPTER THREE – STARDOM: RE-DUBBING AND STAR-IMAGES ............................. 123 RE-DUBBING HOWL’S MOVING CASTLE ............................................................................ 123 RE-DUBBING PONYO ......................................................................................................... 132 RE-DUBBING THE WIND RISES .......................................................................................... 144 4. CHAPTER FOUR – AUTHORSHIP: AUTEUR-STARS AND AUTHOR FUNCTIONS .......... 162 BRANDING HAYAO MIYAZAKI ........................................................................................... 162 BRANDING JOHN LASSETER .............................................................................................. 170 BRANDING STUDIO GHIBLI ................................................................................................ 178 DISNEY AS METONYM ....................................................................................................... 190 5. CHAPTER FIVE – PROMOTION: DISNEYFYING THE PARATEXT .................................. 196 POSTER ANALYSIS.............................................................................................................. 196 TRAILER ANALYSIS ............................................................................................................. 213 6. CONCLUSION: THE DISNEYFICATION OF MEDIA ....................................................... 232 6 CAMPAIGN ANALYSIS AND TECHNOLOGICAL EVOLUTION ............................................... 232 DISNEYFICATION AND HYBRID CONSUMPTION ................................................................ 237 MEDIA MIX AND SELF-DISNEYFICATION ........................................................................... 243 7. FILMOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................... 250 8. WORKS CITED ............................................................................................................ 261 7 0.INTRODUCTION: STUDIO GHIBLI AND DISNEYFICATION This thesis is concerned with the Disneyfication of the last three Studio Ghibli films directed by Hayao Miyazaki and how the globalizing agent of Walt Disney Studios has transformed the paratextual marketing campaigns of these films. This thesis poses the following research questions: to what extent can we describe Howl’s Moving Castle / Hauru no ugoku shiro (Hayao Miyazaki, 2004) – hereafter Howl – Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea / Gake no ue no Ponyo (Hayao Miyazaki, 2008) – hereafter Ponyo – and The Wind Rises / Kaze tachinu (Hayao Miyazaki, 2013) – hereafter Wind – as Disneyfied texts? How do the adherence of Hollywood star-images act to Disneyfy the Ghibli (para)text? How do the auteur-star and author functions involved in the re-marketing of Ghibli products contribute to the Disneyfication systemscape? Which aspects of the English-language promotional paratexts point directly to the application of Disneyfication? It is the hypothesis of this thesis that Disneyfication practices can be primarily located within the application of star-images and authorial brand-names to the promotional campaigns of the aforementioned triptych. First, this thesis assesses the various theoretical frameworks pertaining to the area of Disneyfication and how this concept relates to the case studies addressed in this thesis. Secondly, this thesis demonstrates through an overview of both animation history and global consumption trajectories the point at which Disneyfication is adhered to the Ghibli text. Next, this thesis focuses in on the specificities of Disneyfication at work by looking closely at which specific star-images and brand-names are attached to the films in order to contextualise them for a