Studio Ghibli chairman and producer Toshio Suzuki recently talked to Asahi Shimbun about generative AI and the infamous “Ghibli-style” AI illustrations that flooded the Internet at one point. He also touched on how director Hayao Miyazaki approaches his creative work and the value of Studio Ghibli in the age of AI.
According to Suzuki, though he was inundated with interview requests during the height of the “Ghibli-style AI illustration” boom, he purposely declined them because he considered it to be a fad that people would quickly get bored of. Sure enough, the trend died down, even with Studio Ghibli refusing to comment on the situation in any official capacity.
Suzuki added that “while AI can easily produce a certain type of animation, anyone with even a little knowledge can see right through it. It doesn’t really mean much, and it’s not interesting either.” He contrasts generative AI, which accumulates information available online to put out an “optimal solution,” with Miyazaki, who has apparently cut himself off from outside information to focus on creation ever since working on 2023’s The Boy and the Heron. According to Suzuki, Miyazaki doesn’t even know what generative AI is.
When asked about Studio Ghibli’s place in the age of AI, Suzuki ironically remarks that the technology itself offers a good answer to this question when prompted: “Ghibli will evolve into a cultural entity demonstrating what it means for humans to create art.” He firmly asserts that Hayao Miyazaki’s artistic expression cannot be replicated by AI or CG.
