1986 • Castle in the Sky

      Tenkū no Shiro Rapyuta

      — August J. Babington —

      Alright, what you are about to read may come off as cheesy and even melodramatic. However, this isn’t written with my hands, it’s written by my heart and with love. See what I mean?

      A late summer’s evening is when we found each other. The night you entered my soul and opened it up like a book. The pages that would be written from here would become the story of my life; the chapters that still continue to this day are inked from when Castle in the Sky became my dreams.

      My father had opened a restaurant; of course, I became the dishwasher. It was my first job. I was around the ripe age of fifteen, that impressionable age for movie lovers that awakens something in them when the right film comes along, the right magic.

      It was opening night of the restaurant, a busy night indeed. Not arriving home until close to 1:00 am, I was truly exhausted from the first long workday I had ever experienced. Little did I know a life-changing experience was soon to follow. Ready to collapse and sleep the night away, my younger brother came to me with a rented video. “I got you Castle in the Sky,” he said. “I remember we always saw previews of this and know you always wanted to see it,” he continued. Visiting our grandmother’s house, a tradition we had would be to watch Kiki’s Delivery Service, a film by Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. Before the VHS would start, a preview of Castle in the Sky would play. It was always kind of a mystery to us because we were young and never knew how to find the film to watch it. So now, on this night, the night I could barely keep my eyes open, I decided to fall asleep to this movie. I popped in the DVD with the full intention of falling asleep in minutes. Two hours and five minutes later, this became the first movie I had ever applauded. With tears in my eyes, and no one around, I applauded this movie. Castle in the Sky was the movie that awoke something in me, as cheesy as that may sound. I fell in love for the first time.

      The story sucked me in the instant it started. The art of this film is breathtaking, and as soon as the first frame came into vision I knew I was in for something I wasn’t prepared for. A thrilling action scene ensues, a mysterious young girl seems to be abducted on an airship for unknown reasons, air pirates invade and attempt to take over and, in the chance to escape the overwhelming situation, the mysterious girl falls from the ship possibly to her death. What came next was the moment I began to grow true feelings for Castle in the Sky. The opening credits began to roll and the most beautiful music I’ve ever heard started playing. The score by Joe Hisaishi is masterful. The theme of this movie is truly transportive and took me away to the magical place this movie was meant to be in. He managed to create a character in sound that helps to carry the story. The music Joe Hisaishi provides makes each scene so potent and adds a lot of heart to literally every frame.

      If I get down to it, the true reason I fell in love with this story is the characters. Sheeta the innocent heroine with a mysterious crystal necklace, Pazu the unlikely hero with a delightful trumpet and a heart of gold, Muska the suave yet despicable villain with malevolent goals; I adore these characters. So much care went into their creation, and it shows. You truly get a sense of who they are as people; their agendas, goals, dreams, are all explored nicely. I’ve always liked a story where the apparent villains come to the aid of the protagonists, and you get that in Castle in the Sky with the Dola Gang. These airship pirates initially come off as antagonists with a dastardly agenda. However, through their goofy fumbles and silly failed attempts to capture Sheeta and steal away her crystal, you find yourself growing fond of this group of bumbling pirates. So, when it finally comes time for Pazu to reluctantly ask for their help to rescue his friend from the true evil of the story, these “bad guys” you were secretly rooting for join the battle for good and it’s very satisfying to see what comes next. The Dola Gang helps to flesh out Pazu and Sheeta and also adds a nice levity to the story. All of these characters are the vessels that carry this story and make it truly mesmerizing.

      It wasn’t long after watching Castle in the Sky that I knew I had begun a life journey. I wanted to create my own characters that would go on adventures; characters that would experience heartache, experience love, experience hardships, experience victories. I wanted to create worlds and tell people about them. I wanted to create my own stories. I wanted to tell a story that would concoct and bring out emotions in people. I wanted to make art in this form. I began my journey to become a filmmaker. Castle in the Sky was the switch that clicked on in my brain and in my heart that brought me to the realization of discovering what I want to do with my life. From here, I went on through high school. I made several short films and features. My first was a fantasy drama with as much symbolism and representational art as I could squeeze in. My movie-making would continue to my college years where I received a bachelor’s degree in Digital Filmmaking and Video Production. I have Hayao Miyazaki and his creations to thank for that.

      In my opinion, Hayao Miyazaki is truly one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. He is regarded as the Walt Disney of Japanese Animation. Consistently making classic movies with unforgettable characters. Castle of Cagliostro, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Delivery Service, Porco Rosso, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Ponyo, and The Wind Rises are some of the treasures he has brought to the world and some of the films that many hold close to their hearts. He has been able to bring life experience to us, the viewers, through these special characters and fantastical stories. Hayao Miyazaki’s films are wonderful, you should see them all. Each of them are unique and special. I’m sure to many others, just like myself, his stories sparked the passion to create. Hayao Miyazaki, as a person and as a storyteller, is true magic. It is truly special to me that my favorite film of all time is Hayao Miyazaki’s Castle in the Sky.

      It was the story that made me want to tell my own. It was the first time I realized, this is what I want to do with my life, to create stories. That became my dream, to make films, to bring characters to life, to provoke feelings like the feelings that were provoked in me the first time this masterpiece came into my life. My eyes opened