Studio Ghibli Brings Some Much Needed “Zen” to Star Wars

On Nov. 11, the fantastic Studio Ghibli shared this little image on social media:

Studio Ghibli fans will instantly recognize cofounder and animator extraordinaire Hayao Miyazaki in the background. Yes, the studio did a Star Wars short. Zen: Grogu and the Dust Bunnies. It premiered on Disney Plus the next day, and it is delightful.

Since it is just three minutes long, I’ll give you three things this piece has going for it:

It is simple and hand-drawn.

You want to see in short time just why Studio Ghibli’s style of animation is so popular, watch this piece. It is very basic but packs in a lot of personality. Just when you thought Grogu couldn’t be any cuter, draw him in classic anime.

There is no dialogue.

Directed by Katsuya Kondo (Kiki’s Delivery Service, Ponyo), this piece relies solely on music and the moving image to tell the story. It’s restful and peaceful without overstaying its welcome. The short’s music is courtesy of a Grammy-winning Swedish composer named Ludwig Göransson, who is also responsible for the original score of The Mandalorian.

It is (literally) all about creativity.

Like, the title suggests, this is just a moment of Zen. It is intended to give everyone who watches a moment of happiness seeing little Grogu and the “soot sprites” (Susuwatari). These little guys are familiar sorts to Ghibli fans from films like Spirited Away, and they help give Grogu a moment of “Zen.” More specifically, a concept of letting the mind rest so your body can be more creative. I may be a little off on that, but that’s the basics.

I haven’t been thrilled with too much of the Star Wars world Disney has tried to reboot and rewrite, but when they get something right, I’ll say so.

However, I’m giving most all the credit to the amazing simplicity of Studio Ghibli’s creative “Zen” for this one.

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