Anna hasn’t a friend in the world – until she meets Marnie among the sand dunes. But Marnie isn’t all she seems... A major motion picture adaptation by Studio Ghibli, creators of SPIRITED AWAY and ARRIETTY.

The animations of Japan's Studio Ghibli are amongst the highest regarded in the movie industry. Their delightful films rank alongside the most popular non-English language films ever made, with each new eagerly-anticipated release a guaranteed box-office smash. Yet this highly profitable studio has remained fiercely independent, producing a stream of imaginative and individual animations. The studio's founders, long-time animators Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki, have created timeless masterpieces. Although their films are distinctly Japanese their themes are universal—humanity, community, and a love for the environment. No other film studio, animation or otherwise, comes close to matching Ghibli for pure cinematic experience. All their major works are examined here, as well the early output of Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, exploring the cultural and thematic threads that bind these films together.

When Marnie Was There Coloring Book contains 54 detailed coloring pages from magnificent Studio Ghibli's anime. Each image is printed on a separate page to prevent bleed-through.

The story of filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki's life and work, including his significant impact on Japan and the world A thirtieth-century toxic jungle, a bathhouse for tired gods, a red-haired fish girl, and a furry woodland spirit—what do these have in common? They all spring from the mind of Hayao Miyazaki, one of the greatest living animators, known worldwide for films such as My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, and The Wind Rises. Japanese culture and animation scholar Susan Napier explores the life and art of this extraordinary Japanese filmmaker to provide a definitive account of his oeuvre. Napier insightfully illuminates the multiple themes crisscrossing his work, from empowered women to environmental nightmares to utopian dreams, creating an unforgettable portrait of a man whose art challenged Hollywood dominance and ushered in a new chapter of global popular culture.

Demonstrates what constitutes a good performance, what actors want from a director, what directors do wrong and more.

Rudger is Amanda's best friend. He doesn't exist, but nobody's perfect. Only Amanda can see her imaginary friend – until the sinister Mr Bunting arrives at Amanda's door. Mr Bunting hunts imaginaries. Rumour says that he eats them. And he's sniffed out Rudger. Soon Rudger is alone, and running for his imaginary life. But can a boy who isn't there survive without a friend to dream him up? A brilliantly funny, scary and moving read from the unique imagination of A.F. Harrold, this beautiful book is astoundingly illustrated with integrated art and colour spreads by the award-winning Emily Gravett.

“Thomas’s rhyming reflection on the place Jesus has in a young boy’s life still provides inspiration and comfort to today’s readers.” —School Library Journal A classic for over half a century, If Jesus Came to My House is a tender tale of how a young boy realizes that he can welcome Jesus into his life by helping all people both young and old. This rhymed reflection provides refreshing insight on how we all can learn to be respectful, courteous, giving, and loving toward others. The original two-color illustrations by Henri Sorensen bring the simple inspirational message of this story to life. For generations to come, parents and children will find inspiration in Joan Gale Thomas’s classic book time and time again.

Twenty years ago, animated features were widely perceived as cartoons for children. Today, though, they encompass an astonishing range of films, styles and techniques. There is the powerful adult drama of Waltz with Bashir; the Gallic sophistication of Belleville Rendez-Vous; the eye-popping violence of Japan's Akira; and the stop-motion whimsy of Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. Andrew Osmond provides an entertaining and illuminating guide to the endlessly diverse world of animated features, with entries on 100 of the most interesting and important animated films from around the world, from the 1920s to the present day. There are key studio brands such as Disney, Pixar and Dreamworks, but there are also recognised auteur directors such as America's Brad Bird (The Incredibles) and Japan's Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away). Technologies such as motion-capture, used in films such as Avatar, blur the distinctions between live-action and animation. Meanwhile, lone artists such as Nina Paley (Sita Sings the Blues) and Bill Plympton (Idiots and Angels) make entire films by themselves. Blending in-depth history and criticism, 100 Animated Feature Films balances the blockbusters with local success stories from Eastern Europe to Hong Kong. There are entries on Dreamworks' Shrek, Pixar's Toy Story, and Disney's The Jungle Book, but you will also find pieces on Germany's silhouette-based The Adventures of Prince Achmed, the oldest surviving animated feature; on the thirty year production of Richard Williams' legendary opus, The Thief and the Cobbler; and on the lost work of Argentina's Quirino Cristiani, who reputedly made the first animated feature in 1917.

Walt Disney's animated feature film Fun and Fancy Free opened in September 1947. It was an unusual kind of "package feature," combining two featurette-length stories, Bongo and Mickey and the Beanstalk, in a single motion picture. The two stories were elaborately mounted within a third framing story featuring Jiminy Cricket, and the whole package was further enhanced by the talents of two popular performers: Edgar Bergen and Dinah Shore. Moviegoers who enjoyed this diverting feature were unaware that its various components had been in development for the better part of a decade. Now, for the first time, this Monograph chronicles the full, fascinating history of the making of Fun and Fancy Free. Richly illustrated with over 125 sketches, paintings, and photos, many never previously published, here is the hidden story behind a delightful and underappreciated Disney gem.

In this stunning sequel to Howl's Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones has again created a large-scale, fast-paced fantasy in which people and things are never quite what they seem. There are good and bad djinns, a genie in a bottle, wizards, witches, cats and dogs (but are they cats and dogs?), and a mysterious floating castle filled with kidnapped princesses, as well as two puzzling prophecies. The story speeds along with tantalizing twists and turns until the prophecies are fulfilled, true identities are revealed, and all is resolved in a totally satisfying, breathtaking, surprise-filled ending. Abdullah was a young and not very prosperous carpet dealer. His father, who had been disappointed in him, had left him only enough money to open a modest booth in the Bazaar. When he was not selling carpets, Abdullah spent his time daydreaming. In his dreams he was not the son of his father, but the long-lost son of a prince. There was also a princess who had been betrothed to him at birth. He was content with his life and his daydreams until, one day, a stranger sold him a magic carpet. All fans of classic fantasy books deserve the pleasure of reading those by Diana Wynne Jones, whose acclaim included the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement. As Neil Gaiman stated, she was "quite simply the best writer for children of her generation." The three books in the World of Howl are: Howl's Moving Castle Castle in the Air House of Many Ways Other beloved series from Dianna Wynne Jones include the Chronicles of Chrestomanci and the Dalemark Quartet.