Miyazaki in Los Angeles

The newly-opened Academy Museum (of the American Academy of Motion Pictures) has an exhibit featuring the art of Hayao Miyazaki, the Studio Ghibli founder and director of masterpieces like My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away. I got to see it three weeks ago and haven’t stopped thinking of it since. Worth the price of admission on its own is his conceptual drawing of the eponymous dwelling—chicken-legged and charismatic with jutting turrets and impromptu clotheslines—from Howl’s Moving Castle. Other highlights: poems Miyazaki wrote on Ghibli letterhead to his team while they made Princess Mononoke, countless incredible backgrounds and gels, Miyazaki’s 6-second stopwatch that measures 24ths of a second, and his practical but perfectly-designed drawing desk with built-in light table. Closes June 5th.