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Famous Novelist's Home Inspired Miyazaki's The Wind Rises
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
The home of Meiji-era novelist Natsume Soseki was the inspiration for protagonist Jirō Horikoshi's home in Hayao Miyazaki's final animated film The Wind Rises (Kaze Tachinu). Miyazaki reportedly visited the writer's home in Tamana, Kumamoto Prefecture in 2010 as part of an employee trip sponsored by Studio Ghibli.
This is not the first time Miyazaki has looked to the author for inspiration in his films. He named the lead character of Ponyo, Sosuke, after the main character in Soseki's novel Mon.
Miyazaki is not the first anime filmmaker to base locations in his work off of real places. Mamoru Hosoda based the home in Wolf Children on a real house located Kamiichi, Toyoma.
The Wind Rises has been a massive success in Japan so far, earning over 10 billion yen (about US$100 million) at the Japanese box office. The film will open in theaters stateside on February 21 in both dubbed and subtitled versions.
Source: The Asahi Shimbun
