
Ghibliotheque - A Podcast About Animation and Studio Ghibli
Welcome to the Ghibliotheque, the podcast that leafs through libraries of films from the world’s greatest animation studios.In 2018, Michael Leader, an avowed Studio Ghibli fanatic, sat down with Jake Cunningham, who had never seen any of the Studio’s work before. Together they looked at the history behind Ghibli's films (including Spirited Away, My Neighbour Totoro and Princess Mononoke), and got a critical perspective from Jake as a first-time viewer. They covered all of Studio Ghibli's films, visited Japan on the ultimate Ghibli pilgrimage, and have since interviewed artists, animators and filmmakers who have either worked on or have been deeply inspired by Ghibli's films. With their co-host Steph Watts, they have also branched out to cover filmographies of other studios and filmmakers whose work has revolutionised animation, from Satoshi Kon and Mamoru Hosoda to Cartoon Saloon and Henry Selick.Where will we go next? For more information, follow us on Twitter at @ghibliotheque, or on Instagram at ghibliotheque.pod. Or email us at ghibliotheque@gmail.com.Follow Michael and Jake on Twitter:@MichaelJLeader – Michael@jakehcunningham – Jake Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Latest episodes

Jul 5, 2024 • 1h 12min
A.F. Harrold on The Imaginary | Interview Special
Author and poet A.F. Harrold joins Michael to speak about the experience of having his novel, The Imaginary, adapted into a feature film by Studio Ponoc, as well as his memories of writing the book, his love of libraries, and his approach to writing stories for children.You can find out more about A.F. and his work at his website, http://www.afharroldkids.com/Subscribe to our Patreon for ad-free episodes and bonus conversations in our Library Cafe series.Follow us on Twitter or Instagram, or drop us an email at ghibliotheque@gmail.com. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 28, 2024 • 1h 16min
Yoshiaki Nishimura on The Imaginary and Studio Ponoc | Interview Special
Studio Ponoc founder Yoshiaki Nishimura (Mary and the Witch's Flower, Modest Heroes) speaks with Michael about Ponoc's new film, The Imaginary, as well as his love of children's fiction and live-action cinema, and his time at Studio Ghibli producing The Tale of the Princess Kaguya and When Marnie Was There.Thank you to Eyre Kurasawa for translating our conversation. If you want to hear the full conversation with all of Mr Nishimura's Japanese responses intact, skip to around 31 minutes.Subscribe to our Patreon for ad-free episodes and bonus conversations in our Library Cafe series.Follow us on Twitter or Instagram, or drop us an email at ghibliotheque@gmail.com. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 21, 2024 • 1h 16min
Spirited Away on Stage | Ghibliotheque
This special episode of the podcast dives into the stage adaptation of Spirited Away, which is currently running at the Coliseum theatre in London's West End. With Jake on parental leave, Michael enlists the help of co-host Steph Watts and friends of the show Adam Woodward (Little White Lies, TCOLondon) and Sam Clements (90 Minutes Or Less Film Fest) to tackle this epic production that brings Hayao Miyazaki's magical masterpiece to the stage.Subscribe to our Patreon for ad-free episodes and bonus conversations in our Library Cafe series.Follow us on Twitter or Instagram, or drop us an email at ghibliotheque@gmail.com. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 14, 2024 • 31min
Ultraman Rising with Shannon Tindle & John Aoshima | Interview Special
Michael is joined this week by Shannon Tindle and John Aoshima to talk about their new film, Ultraman Rising, as well as their approach to animation, running a smooth ship through production, their experiences studying at The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), and their first exposures to the world of Studio Ghibli.Subscribe to our Patreon for ad-free episodes and bonus conversations in our Library Cafe series.Follow us on Twitter or Instagram, or drop us an email at ghibliotheque@gmail.com. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 7, 2024 • 1h 4min
Apollo 10 ½: A Space Age Childhood | The Richard Linklectures #3
This week, our Richard Linklectures miniseries comes to an end with a trip to the 1960s for Linklater's rich, textured, gorgeously animated portrait of an era, Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood.Subscribe to our Patreon for ad-free episodes and bonus conversations on the Linklater films Slacker, School of Rock and Hit Man.Follow us on Twitter or Instagram, or drop us an email at ghibliotheque@gmail.com. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 31, 2024 • 59min
A Scanner Darkly | The Richard Linklectures #2
This week, Michael and Jake take a trip into the mind of Philip K Dick with Richard Linklater's second animated film in the rotoscoped style, the psychedelic, sci-fi-tinged thriller, A Scanner Darkly.Subscribe to our Patreon for ad-free episodes and bonus conversations on the Linklater films Slacker, School of Rock and Hit Man.Follow us on Twitter or Instagram, or drop us an email at ghibliotheque@gmail.com. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 24, 2024 • 1h 6min
Waking Life | The Richard Linklectures #1
Michael and Jake return with a new miniseries diving into three animated films from independent cinema icon Richard Linklater (Boyhood, Before Sunrise, Dazed and Confused), starting with his 2001 rotoscoped feature Waking Life: a heady exploration of dreaming, philosophy, existentialism, the frontiers of theoretical science and everything in between.Watch Richard Linklater talk Waking Life on Tech TV circa 2001 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHNjigGtUZISubscribe to our Patreon for ad-free episodes and bonus conversations on the Linklater films Slacker, School of Rock and Hit Man.Follow us on Twitter or Instagram, or drop us an email at ghibliotheque@gmail.com. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mar 22, 2024 • 46min
Pablo Berger on Robot Dreams | Interview
Michael speaks with Spanish director Pablo Berger about his critically-acclaimed and award-winning feature animation Robot Dreams, which is in UK cinemas from 22nd March.Read Michael's review of the film here, and his feature on the animation process behind the film here. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mar 15, 2024 • 28min
Chiara Malta and Sebastien Laudenbach on Chicken for Linda! | Interview
Directors Chiara Malta and Sebastien Laudenbach speak with Michael about their astounding new film, Chicken for Linda, which was a hit on the festival and awards circuit in 2023, and is screening around the UK in March, April and May.Watch a trailer for Chicken for Linda here.Chicken for Linda screens as part of the Made in Italy Festival at the Ciné Lumière on 23rd March. Tickets are available here.You can also catch the film at the Cardiff Animation Festival, the Barbican Centre Family Film Club and Flatpack Film Festival.Thanks to Matt Dinsdale for coordinating this interview, and to Stefania Bochicchio for translating the conversation. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mar 8, 2024 • 52min
Jim Capobianco on The Inventor | Interview
Michael speaks with director Jim Capobianco about his new film, The Inventor, and working in stop-motion for the first time after years working in hand-drawn and CG animation. They also speak about the film's themes of patronage, inspiration and creativity, as well as Jim's amazing work at Disney and Pixar (including his Oscar-nominated work on Ratatouille), and his longstanding relationship with Cartoon Saloon.The Inventor is in UK cinemas now, screening exclusively at Vue Cinemas: https://www.theinventorfilm.com/ Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.