After a five year hiatus since the release of Ponyo, Hayao Miyazaki is back with his newest animated feature, The Wind Rises. Based off Jiro Horikoshi, the engineer who designed the Zero Fighter for Japan during World War II, The Wind Rises looks to be a bit less "fantastical" and tad more grounded than previous Miyazaki works. Despite there not being talking cats, fantasy creatures, and unknown worlds (as far as we know) the animation of The Wind Rises is looking absolutely stunning. With references to Miyazaki's 2009 work on the two-part manga, Kaze Tachinu (which also tells the story of Jiro Horikoshi) the newest film seems to be expanding on the story with a new cast of characters.
Before the production of Ponyo, Studio Ghibli's computer animation department was dissolved in a movement to shift all work to paper. The movement has paid off tenfold, and it seems the studio's skills as a hand-drawn department improve dramatically with each film. While no International release has been announced, The Wind Rises is coming to theaters July 20th in Japan.
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