Considering the fact that Demon Slayer is incredibly trending right now, one reporter had an idea. He would go after the legendary Hayao Miyazaki and ask him how he feels about it. Now, the famous Studio Ghibli co-founder and director is retired, so the reporter had to be creative. Miyazaki’s daily routine involves waking up early to pick up trash and keep the street outside his house clean. I think saying that he was harassed is pretty accurate, as the man preferred to pick up trash than answer questions. Still, the reporter got some answers from Hayao Miyazaki about Demon Slayer in the end, though probably not what he wanted.
One of the most known Ghibli films, Spirited Away, is still the highest grossing anime film in Japan. It sits at around 30.8 Billion yen, and the Demon Slayer phenomenon has recently crossed 20 billion (after 24 days). It’s only a matter of time it overtakes the top, so the reporter focused his questions on that.
The following interview was translated by SoraNews24:
Reporter: Box-office sales for Demon Slayer are approaching that of Spirited Away. What’s your view on that?
Miyazaki: “Well, I don’t think it has anything to do with me. It’s better if people don’t concern themselves with things like box-office records and concentrate on making their workplaces harmonious instead. It’s fine as long as you work hard on what you’re making.”
Reporter: Have you watched Demon Slayer?
Miyazaki: “No I haven’t. I rarely watch other things. I don’t watch TV, I don’t watch movies. I’m a retired old man picking up trash.”
Reporter: Some fans will be upset if Spirited Away doesn’t retain its historic number one spot.
Miyazaki: “That sort of thing isn’t worth worrying about. There’s always inflation in the world. Right now, I have to pick up trash…”
Reporter: So…you’re currently working on How Do You Live? (The production was announced in 2017). Is it all going well?
Miyazaki: “I’m doing it. I’m doing it while retired. You should direct any questions about that to Toho [Japanese film production and distribution company]. Because I don’t know everything about it. I have to go around and pick up trash, so…”
Obviously the Ghibli director showed class and answered politely. It’s clear, however, that he would have rather continued his task of cleaning trash instead of answering. It’s a common stereotype that reporters will do anything for a headline, but this one clearly lived up to it.
The comments from Hayao Miyazaki about Demon Slayer were satisfying to read. I hope that the “How Do You Live” project is going well and that there won’t be more situations like this one for the director.
Source: SoraNews24
