The mighty trees swaying in the wind from My Neighbor Totoro, the dense forests through which Princess Mononoke rides on the back of a wolf, and the boundless landscapes over which she flies in Laputa: Castle in the Sky: in Hayao Miyazaki’s animated films, the environment is the backbone of the story and often the starting point of the narrative. La Nave di Teseo has recently published a volume previously unpublished in Italy Starting Point, a collection of thoughts, interviews, reflections, and comics created by Miyazaki between 1979 and 1996.
It is a fascinating book that explores the figure of a well-rounded, “vibrant” intellectual who uses storytelling through images as a tool for reflecting on contemporary Japan and, more broadly, on society. He does so through a lens steeped in love and fascination for nature, where inspiration, imagination, and storytelling are inextricably intertwined—we see this in the early films discussed in the book as well as in the more recent *Ponyo on the Cliff*, *The Wind Rises*, *Spirited Away*, winner of the Golden Bear at Berlin and the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. Animals, plants, and natural elements take center stage in fantastical stories that nonetheless highlight the urgent need to care for the planet and to embrace the perspective of others—even when those others are part of the animal or plant kingdom.
A white oak tree by the window
There is a very interesting passage in this book where Miyazaki writes about trees. He explains that his desire to depict trees began when he was a child in middle school, as he would gaze every day from his classroom window at a massive white oak. From that moment on, he felt a compelling urge to use animated imagery to tell the story of that plant world—a symbol of the complexity of our planet and of life itself. It is an extraordinary world that can only be fully grasped by adopting a different perspective—even that of a pebble, as Miyazaki writes, or that of the plants themselves.
This is the case, for example, in one of her most beloved films, the making of which is discussed in the book *Punto di Partenza*. *Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind* is a 1984 film set in a post-nuclear war world, where nature is perceived as threatening, but the protagonist, Nausicaa, wants to understand its suffering and heal it. Here, love for the environment is intertwined with the theme of peace among peoples and the need to put oneself in another’s shoes, as is also the case in the 1978 animated series *Conan the Boy of the Future*.
These are issues that are more relevant than ever, and this book brings them back into focus by posing the same question Miyazaki asked at the time: what direction is humanity heading in?The same question looms large today, in a scenario where we find ourselves discussing nuclear weapons and new wars that no one could have imagined, having taken lasting peace for granted. A peace that is inextricably linked to the health of the environment as a whole.
When the Cherry Trees Bloom
In Japan, natural elements have always been part of everyday philosophy and spirituality, symbols of balance, harmony, and inner peace—the very things the protagonist of The Boy and the Heron, Miyazaki’s latest film (2024), after losing his mother, guided by a talking heron through an imaginative world.
Living in a society where plants are considered a fundamental part of the environment helps us view trees as a familiar part of the landscape—a place where we can feel comfortable, safe, and at home. Traditionally in Japan, the seasons also mark the rhythm of community life:“Sakura ga saita”(“The cherry blossoms have bloomed”) is the phrase recited by children at the start of the school year in April, and it is also the first phrase they learn to write.
The fleeting time of childhood
In *My Neighbor Totoro*, Miyazaki reflects on the importance of nurturing children’s inner worlds during the most crucial—and at the same time, the briefest—phase of life, when their view of the world is taking shape. As children, we immerse ourselves in a fantastical world of dreams and wonder—animals, plants, magic, and stories where anything can happen—but then we grow up and drift away from this universe that was once so important to us. Yet that brief time spent with an open mind and heart, discovering the world and its many wonders, can change the way we live and interpret the events that unfold. Those stories heard in the evening or seen at the movies can help us interpret the world and become people who are aware that we are immersed in a precious environment, of which we are mere elements in a complex system. An environment to be cared for and nurtured, with the determination, hope, and resilience of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind.
