Socially Away - A Studio Ghibli Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

This week, Studio Ghibli enters the 21st century with the film that catapulted the studio to Western fame with the Oscar-winning Spirited Away! Featuring Victoria Provost (discussion leader), Eli Azizollahoff, Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi, Kenjiro Lee, Ken Leng, Char Nakashima-Conway, and Elizabeth Ombrellaro!

Our theme song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden (soundcloud.com/rossbugden). Additional music by Kevin MacLeod (Incompetech.com). Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions.

This week Ghibli takes a distinctly domestic turn with Isao Takahata's My Neighbors the Yamadas. Featuring the glorious return of Char Nakashima-Conway (discussion leader), Eli Azizolahoff, Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi, Kenjiro Lee, Ken Leng, Elizabeth Ombrellaro, and Victoria Provost.

Our theme song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden (soundcloud.com/rossbugden). Additional music by Kevin MacLeod (Incompetech.com). Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions.

This week we try our best to tackle perhaps one of the most infamous Ghibli films, Grave of the Fireflies. Featuring Ken Leng (discussion leader), Eli Azizollahoff, Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi, Kenjiro Lee, and Victoria Provost. 

Theme song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden (https://soundcloud.com/rossbugden). Logo design by Victoria Provost. Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions.

This week we reach new heights with the first official Studio Ghibli film, Castle in the Sky. Featuring Victoria Provost (discussion leader), Eli Azizollahoff, Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi, Kenjiro Lee, Ken Leng, and Char Nakashima-Conway.

Theme song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden (soundcloud.com/rossbugden). Logo design by Victoria Provost. Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions.

In the first episode of Socially Away, we do a deep dive into the world of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Featuring Kotaro Horiuchi (discussion leader), Eli Azizollahoff, Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi, Kenjiro Lee, Ken Leng, and Victoria Provost.

Theme song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden (soundcloud.com/rossbugden). Logo design by Victoria Provost. Credits read by Char Nakashima-Conway. Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions. Video version can be viewed here.

0:00 Kenjiro's Intro
0:50 Opening Theme
1:24 Panelist Intros and Check-ins
3:56 What We're About
5:46 An Introduction to Nausicaä and Kota's Thoughts
8:24 Panelist Thoughts and Reactions
14:33 Discussion begins
14:42 Who is the Enemy/Empathy/Revenge
21:41 Thematic Antagonists
25:43 Complacency
28:53 Imperialism in the Film and in History
30:39 Optimism in a Post-Apocalyptic World
35:56 Fear
39:20 Kushana as a Literary Foil
45:15 The Giant Warrior and the Atomic Bomb
51:05 The present moment as a post-apocalyptic event
57:43 Final Thoughts
1:05:05 The Trivia Game!
1:12:58 Outro/Check-outs
1:16:55 Credits

Introducing Socially Away: A Studio Ghibli Podcast! An all-new podcast for these socially distant times where we go through the entire Ghibli catalog, in order, from Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind to When Marnie Was There. Our journey begins on Thursday, August 27, so get ready to follow along!

Song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden. Downloadable at soundcloud.com/rossbugden. Logo design by Victoria Provost.

This week we take a look at arguably the most violent film in the entire catalogue and the film that brought Ghibli to a wider audience in America, Hayao Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke. Featuring Eli Azizollahoff (discussion leader), Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi, Kenjiro Lee, Megumi Lee, Ken Leng, Elizabeth Ombrellaro, and Victoria Provost.

Our theme song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden (soundcloud.com/rossbugden). Additional music by Kevin MacLeod (Incompetech.com). Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions.

This week we look at the only film directed by the late Yoshifumi Kondo, Whisper of the Heart. Featuring Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi (discussion leader), Eli Azizolahoff, Kenjiro Lee, Ken Leng, and Victoria Provost.

Our theme song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden (soundcloud.com/rossbugden). Additional music by Kevin MacLeod (Incompetech.com). Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions.

This week we see a sillier if no less poignant turn for Isao Takahata in a film that is way too easy to make jokes about, Pom Poko! Featuring Kenjiro Lee (discussion leader), Eli Azizolahoff, Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi, Ken Leng, and Victoria Provost.

Theme song is "Ghibli's Waltz" by Ross Bugden. Additional music by Kevin MacCleod (incompetech.com).  Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions.

This week we take a look at an oft-overlooked member of the Ghibli catalog, Ocean Waves. Featuring Elizabeth Ombrellaro (discussion leader), Larissa Guerrini-Maraldi, Kenjiro Lee, Ken Leng, and Victoria Provost.

Theme song is "Ghilbi's Waltz" by Ross Bugden (soundcloud.com/rossbudgen). Additional music by Kevin MacCleod (incompetech.com).  Follow us on Facebook @SociallyAway or on YouTube at Soft Shell Productions.