I wanted My Neighbor Totoro to be a heartwarming feature film that would not only entertain and touch its viewers, but stay with them long after they have left the theaters. I wanted the spirit of the film to endear lovers to each other, inspire parents to fondly recall their childhood, and encourage kids to roam around temple grounds or climb trees.

What can Japan be proud of? Until recently, parents and kids have been able to easily answer, “nature and the seasonal beauty,” but no one can say that anymore. Those of us who live in Japan—and who are indeed Japanese—shun [the reality of] our country, where animation is a form of escapism. Is this country that awful, so devoid of hope now?

A while back, “persons with Western affectations” became a popular term. Initially, it was a disparaging term describing people who preferred Western ways over Japanese ways. A typical example is Red Shirt, a character in Soseki Natsume’s Botchan. But in postwar times, the meaning has changed a bit.

Unable to love Japan that lost to America in the war, yet they didn’t want to wag their tails at America. They realized there’s another Western region, Europe. Unlike America, Europe has a long history and old traditions.

This was the birth of a new group of “persons with Western affectations.” These were people who longed for Europe and had a preference for products of Western culture.

Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki were no exceptions.