 "ChatGPT’s Ghibli-style images: Who is Hayao Miyazaki, man behind OG Studio Ghibli?")
Social media has recently become a Studio Ghibli realm.
And it’s all thanks to OpenAI’s latest image-generation update on ChatGPT.
While a section of people are enjoying creating Ghibli-style portraits, an old video of Hayao Miyazaki, the founder of Studio Ghibli and sometimes referred to as the Japanese Walt Disney, voicing grave reservations about AI-generated animation, is going viral.
The old clip about utilising AI to make art has sparked a heated discussion about technology and creativity.
Here’s all we know about him.
Who is Hayao Miyazaki?
Japanese animator and filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki was born on January 5, 1941, to Katsuji Miyazaki And his wife Dola Miyazaki in Tokyo.
He studied political science and economics before starting a career as an animator with Toei Animation in 1963.
He admired the manga style of Japanese animation. Initially finding it difficult to depict humans, Miyazaki devoted years to sketching tanks, battleships, and aeroplanes, all of which have appeared in his films.
On June 15, 1985, Suzuki Toshio, Isao Takahata, and Miyazaki founded Studio Ghibli. It is renowned for its deep storytelling and hand-drawn animation in its exceptional films.
Its films include themes of environmentalism, family, feminism, and resistance to war.
He was referred to as the “Asian Walt Disney” and “Japan’s most significant contemporary film director” in an article published in the German publication Der Spiegel in 2011.
The Academy presented Miyazaki with an honorary award at the Governors Awards in 2014.
My Neighbour Totoro (1988), Spirited Away (2001), and The Boy and the Heron (2023) are some of the company’s best-known animated productions. The other two films have even won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
The manga series Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, which Miyazaki worked on from 1982 to 1984, as well as numerous animated films and Hikotei Jidai, which became the movie Porco Rosso, are among his other well-known works, according to IMDb.
The studio has produced and/or animated 25 films, as well as TV shows, ads, short films, and video games.
Furthermore, having experienced the aftermath of World War II, he wrote about his earliest memories of “bombed-out cities” in his book Starting Point: 1979 to 1996.
‘An insult to life’
In the 2016 NHK documentary, which includes the widely watched video, Miyazaki denounces AI-generated animation as an “insult to life itself.”
The remark comes as the visionary behind Spirited Away reacted to an AI-generated animation showing a distorted, zombie-like figure.
A team of animators and designers described in the video how AI might produce odd, unnatural motions that are beyond human comprehension.
Since this utter garbage is trending, we should take a look at what Hayao Miyazaki, the founder of Studio Ghibli, said about machine created art. https://t.co/1TMPcFGIJE pic.twitter.com/IvaM9WZL3T
— Nuberodesign (@nuberodesign) March 26, 2025
The presenter says, “It looks like it’s dancing. It’s moving by using its head. It doesn’t feel any pain and has no concept of protecting its head. It uses its head like a leg. This movement is so creepy and could be applied to a zombie video game. Artificial intelligence could present us with grotesque movements that we humans can’t imagine.”
The explanation and the animated image did not impress Miyazaki, who mentioned that he had a friend with a disability who had trouble with simple gestures like giving a high five due to stiff muscles.
He said that this animation picture of strange motions made him think about his friend’s struggle, which is not amusing.
Miyazaki says, “I can’t watch this stuff and find (it) interesting. Whoever creates this stuff has no idea what pain is whatsoever. I am utterly disgusted. If you really want to make creepy stuff, you can go ahead and do it. I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all.”
He further said, “I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself.”
Explaining his presentation, the designer said, “This is just our experiment and we don’t intend to do anything by showing it to the world.”
Art vs technology
Miyazaki’s words reappeared on social media as ChatGPT’s latest model, GPT-4o, allows users to create Ghibli-style images with simple prompts like, “A Studio Ghibli version of me in a magical forest.”
anyway, this is what I look like in Ghibli style... pic.twitter.com/dQ4sr06wjY
— Caris Cooper 🐚 (@caris_cooper) March 28, 2025
Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, joined the trend by changing his profile photo to an AI-generated Ghibli-style image.
The AI-generated art is praised by many as entertaining, but many share Miyazaki’s concerns.
the connection held by the artist .
— SWAMP 🐊 CITIZEN (@SWAMPC1T1Z3N) March 28, 2025
The Ghibli filter breaks my heart especially , for some so warm , so cozy , so nostalgic , they managed to strip it out of its soul and daylight rob it as if it meant nothing at all .
Knowing Hayao Miyazaki , he would be extremely mad at +
A netizen commented, “Miyazaki spent decades perfecting his craft, and now people think typing a prompt makes them artists.”
To train their AI they need data, that data being Ghibli's work that they use without permission from Ghibli
— Kambing Besi (@kambingbesi) March 28, 2025
The general problem with AI image generator is this, they use artworks without permission from the original creator
Others argue AI “mimics aesthetics but lacks the soul” that defines Ghibli films.
The new Ghibli tread is annoying as hell! Please don't ruin Studio Ghibli for me.
— Atharv Swami (@AtharvSwamiiii) March 28, 2025
Yeah, they’ll follow anything.
— β𝑒𝐓𝓱𝐚ᒪƗ𝓩𝐚✨ (@bethaliza021) March 28, 2025
Do they even understand how long Studio Ghibli takes to make a film? Making memes in the style of Ghibli is kind of a slap in the face to the artists.
But I do love them lol 😂
With inputs from agencies
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