February 2002

February 28, 2002 "Spirited Away" Heading to Australia
Dale confirmed with Madman Entertainment that the firm is bringing "Spirited Away" to Australia:

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Madman is hoping to do a theatrical run hopefully in late 2002, with an Australian VHS/DVD release in early 2003.

The above dates are very tentative at this stage, since this must be the biggest project Madman has ever done.
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Thanks to Dale for posting the news to the MML.

February 25, 2002 "Whisper of the Heart" Next Studio Ghibli DVD
As reported over at AnimeOnDVD, "Whisper of the Heart" is scheduled for a May 24 release. No details about the DVD yet announced. They'll be added to the Video page as soon as they're known.

The "Sherlock Holmes" movie is also scheduled for a DVD release on May 24. For more information about the movie, read the "Sherlock Holmes" FAQ.

February 19, 2002 Miyazaki's next film possibly in 2004
According to Toshio SUZUKI, president of Studio Ghibli, Miyazaki's next film will probably be released in 2004. The quote from the press conference interview at the Berlinale Film Festival: "If I can believe Mr. Miyazaki, this will happen in 2004. (smiles)"

Here's hoping!

Thanks to Jens Vogel for the tip.

February 19, 2002 Miyazaki and the Golden Bear
Here are a couple of articles and videos (in Japanese) that shows pictures of Miyazaki holding the Golden Bear:


He commented, "It's heavy," when he was handed the Bear, and said "It's a heavy award. But the film has been already rewarded when audience saw it." "It's not like you are 40 and you have a future. Getting an award at this age...I will try not to think about it."

Thanks to Ryoko Toyama for the articles and translation. Thanks to rmormo for the video links.

February 17, 2002 "Sen" Wins the Golden Bear at Berlin International Film Festival
A verbatim email that was sent to Team Ghiblink from René Pfeifer:

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Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi gets the golden Bear !
Sen shares the first place with "Bloody Sunday".
The news are not allowed to be published before 19.45 (central european time, paris)
But a german radio station did it before!
You can read the news on: www.swr3.de
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For official confirmation, visit this page on the offical website.



Articles will be placed on the Impressions page as they arrive.

Thanks to Rober Vincenz and Jacinda for the links to the video clips.

February 13, 2002 **Preliminary** "Spirited Away" Theatrical Rights Secured for UK, Switzerland, Italy, and Russia
Screen Daily is reporting that the theatrical rights for the film have been sold to various companies:


Thanks to Joe Curzon for posting the news to the MML

February 11, 2002 "Spirited Away" Article
A Japan Today article covering "Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi" at the Berlin Film Festival also contained several quotes from Studio Ghibli President Toshio Suzuki about the film's future in the West.

Thanks to Olivier Mouroux of Animated Movies for the reminder.

February 7, 2002 Japanese "Porco Rosso" DVD Delayed
CD Japan is now reporting that the DVD release date has been pushed back to March 29, 2002. Thanks to Kevin Wagner for the update.

CD Japan is reporting that the upcoming DVD release of "Porco Rosso" will have the French dub and subtitles.

Good news since the original French DVD has gone out-of-print.

Thanks to Vincent Kieffer for posting the news to the MML.