Fans get first look at forthcoming Studio Ghibli theme park

Theme park set to open in autumn 2022

Fans have been given a first look at the forthcoming Studio Ghibli theme park. 

First announced by the Japanese studio in 2017, the theme park is now due to open as early as autumn 2022.  It will be located at the Aichi Expo Memorial Park in Nagakute City, Aichi Prefecture, in Japan. 

Although construction is still underway, two new images of concept art for the park have been released. 

Fans of the Ghibli movies will recognise the eponymous structure from Howl’s Moving Castle, which the Ghibli team plan on building as tall as four-to-five storeys, according to reports from NME.

The second image is concept art for a replica of the village area seen in the studio’s 1997 film Princess Mononoke. 

Kotaku reports that the theme park will be divided into five areas: Witch Valley, Princess Mononoke Village, Ghibli’s Giant Warehouse, Dondoko Forest and Springtime of Life Hill. 

Studio Ghibli’s forthcoming feature Earwig and the Witch is the studio’s first film that uses full 3D CGI animation as opposed to being hand drawn.

The first scene from the film was released on 28 January to mixed reviews, with many viewers describing the new animation style as “off-putting”.

Earwig and the Witch is yet to receive a UK release date.