| | |  | BOOK | Home » » » Starting Point: 1979-1996 | | | | | | | Description: | | R to L (Japanese Style). A hefty compilation of essays (both pictorial and prose), notes, concept sketches and interviews by (and with) Hayao Miyazaki. Arguably the most respected animation director in the world, Miyazaki is the genius behind "Howl's Moving Castle," Princess Mononoke" and the Academy Award-winning film, "Spirited Away." | | | Product Details: | | | Author:
| Hayao Miyazaki | | Hardcover:
| 500 pages | | Publisher:
| VIZ Media LLC | | Publication Date:
| August 04, 2009 | | Language:
| English | | ISBN:
| 1421505940 | | Product Length:
| 9.0 inches | | Product Width:
| 6.36 inches | | Product Height:
| 1.5 inches | | Product Weight:
| 1.78 pounds | | Package Length:
| 9.2 inches | | Package Width:
| 6.2 inches | | Package Height:
| 1.7 inches | | Package Weight:
| 1.8 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 6 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 6 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
31 of 31 found the following review helpful:
 A great, complex readSep 15, 2009
By Christian Jaeschke
Starting Point: 1979-1996 is an amazing book. It's a heavy read, with essays covering everything from Miyazaki's works, to philosophy and religion, Japanese economy and the life of an animator and so much more. I found it a contradictory, frustrating and often pessimistic read but also to be incredibly fascinating and honest. It adds a whole new dimension to the man we know in Miyazaki. He's a genius as an animator but it seems he must be a terribly unfulfilled person in real life (he missed much of his children's lives due to his workaholic attitude). The book could do with some more pictures and maybe more information on his Nausicaa manga but otherwise it's a brilliant, if not always a happy read. I hope Viz Media release the sequel - Turning Point: 1997-2008, sometime in the near future. Highly recommended for Miyazaki fans. 5/5
10 of 10 found the following review helpful:
The vision of a geniusJan 29, 2010
By N. Villarreal Esqueda
"animation and book geek"
Hayao Miyazaki is considered one of the best directors of animation history.
That easily is the best reason of why to buy this book. Covering the sursprisingly amount of 500 pages, Starting Point (in a beatiful edition by Viz Media) icludes not only all the essays and commentaries written by Miyazaki between 1979 and 1996, but also integrates a lot of skecthes, cartoons and rare drawings of the famous director. Not only that, but the biggest catch of the book is discovering that Miyazaki, as what it is (a genius), it's also a complex individual and a likeable writer. His opinions included in this book, cover a wide variety of topics: the history of Japan, animation principles, evolution of the anime industry, his personal life, opinions of society, ecology, war and even life.
Starting Point is a provoking and complex read. The opinions of Miyazaki may come as overly extreme or controversial, but in his broad vision of the world is clear that he makes his animated movies with passion and care for the children (which are his intended audience). Viz Media deserves a price for this hardcover edition, the design and quality is top-notch and includes a brief, but insightful introduction by John Lasseter and an Afterword, by the also amazing director, Isao Takahata -from Grave of the Fireflies fame-.
A recommended read by fans of anime, animation or Studio Ghibli and a must-buy by animation students.
9 of 10 found the following review helpful:
 Memoirs, Essays, and Interviews of MiyazakiDec 02, 2009
By William Edwards
"Bill"
If you are a fan of HM and Studio Ghibli you will be interested. It includes his past writings and memories, and his opinions on his work, anime, Japan and the world. He is opinionated and uninhibited, and some may find it repetitious, or some parts less interesting. But it gives a fine picture of his thinking and where his work comes from.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
These essays and interviews give you an insight into Hayao MiyazakiJul 06, 2011
By Lesley Aeschliman
Starting Point 1979-1996 is a book by Hayao Miyazaki that was translated by Beth Cary and Frederik L. Schodt. The translation was first published by Viz Media in August 2009, and it had a second printing in January 2010. The book opens with a Foreward by John Lasseter from Pixar Animation. Then, the main contents of the book are essays and pieces written by Miyazaki and interviews done with Miyazaki. These are divided into six sections: "On Creating Animation," "On the Periphery of the Work," "People," "My Favorite Things," "Planning Notes; Directorial Memoranda," and "Works." In the middle of the book there is a section called "A Story in Color," which is a piece that Miyazaki illustrated and wrote for the June 1994 edition of Japan Airlines' in-flight magazine. The book closes with a biographical chronology and an Afterword written by Isao Takahata.
The first section of the book is "On Creating Animation." It includes twelve pieces Miyazaki wrote that talk about his thoughts on what animation is, how animation is created, how to draw movements, his thoughts on scenarios, and his thoughts on the workplace for animators. Next is "On the Periphery of the Work," which includes seventeen different pieces. Here, Miyazaki talks about his thoughts on Dave Fleischer, his thoughts on Fantastic Planet, his thoughts on two student shorts that he viewed, his thoughts on period dramas, his thoughts on The Man Who Planted Trees, his thoughts on the first war in Iraq, the type of film he'd like to create, his theories on the popularity of manga, and his thoughts on environmental issues.
The next section is "People," in which Miyazaki shares anecdotes and thoughts about people he has known both in his personal life and in his professional life. This is followed by "A Story in Color," which is eight pages of a kind of manga telling of the history of in-flight meals.
"My Favorite Things" includes a few drawings from Miyazaki's scrapbook. The first few pages have been translated into English. However, there is a second copy of two of the pieces that include Miyazaki's original text in his handwriting. I personally thought this was a nice touch. This is followed by a couple of pieces by Miyazaki about his car and the Takei Sanseido stationary store. "Planning Notes; Directorial Memoranda" include a proposal to acquire the film rights to Richard Corben's Rowlf, press release material for Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, the original proposal for Castle in the Sky, the project plan and a directorial memo for My Neighbor Totoro, a piece about Kiki's Delivery Service, a couple of proposals for projects that were never produced, a directorial memo for Porco Rosso, a piece about Whisper of the Heart, and a planning memo for Princess Mononoke.
The next section is "Works," and it includes Miyazaki talking about some of the projects he had worked on: Lupin III, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Future Boy Conan, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Porco Rosso, Panda! Go Panda!, and "On Your Mark." The biographical chronology starts with Miyazaki's birth in 1941, and ends with the opening of the Ponyo exhibit at the Ghibli Museum in 2009.
I personally found this book to be rather fascinating; however, it is not something I would consider to be "light reading." I really enjoyed being able to see a bit of who Hayao Miyazaki is through the pieces and interviews included in the book. I also liked getting to see some of the production notes for Miyazaki's works that I have seen. Probably the hardest part of the book for me to get through was the section talking about Future Boy Conan, because it's one of the few Miyazaki works addressed in this book that I have not personally had a chance to see.
I think the readers who would get the most out of this book are those who like Hayao Miyazaki and his works. If you're a fan of Miyazaki or Studio Ghibli, this book would be worth adding to your anime book library.
I wrote this review after reading a copy of this book that my husband gave to me as a gift.
7 of 10 found the following review helpful:
Great insight into the mind of a masterAug 25, 2009
By Jacob A. Stevens
"Jacob A Stevens"
I love reading stuff like this. It's great to get a glimpse into the workings of a genius mind. This extensive collection of essays and interviews covers a timeframe up to just before Mononoke was released.
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