…Err, sorry, the new official international title for Gake no Ue no Ponyo has been announced, and it sends me into fits of Bobby Darin. The movie, whose title has long been translated literally as “Ponyo on a Cliff” by English-speakers, will officially be called Ponyo on a Cliff by the Sea.

Ghibli World just posted translations of a new interview with Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki regarding Ponyo on a Cliff, in which Miyazaki says the following:

I moved the location of Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid to the Japan of today and cut off the Catholic color. It will show an adventure and love of small kids.

It sounds a little weird, until you realize he just means that it’s about a water-dweller that wants to become human, and not that the main fishy character will wind up literally dying for her beloved.

This is a story about a fish kid that has a selfish wish to get along with Sousuke, a human boy, and carries out her intention. Meanwhile it is a story about the 5 year old boy Sousuke carrying out his promise.

Sounds cute, no? Also, in this article I very erroneously reported that Miyazaki’s next film would involve a Japanese lullaby; in fact, it’s actually a new Ghibli flick involving cofounder Isao Takahata. So if Miyazaki will be involved, we don’t know yet. Sorry ’bout that!

Keep meaning to get to this one: GhibliWorld reports that Hayao Miyazaki’s next flick with Studio Ghibli will be based on a Japanese lullaby, prompting a report that tells you more about Japanese lullabies than you ever thought you’d know. Apparently they’re more akin to the spirituals sung by slaves in the 1860s than to the get-the-damn-baby-to-shut-up tunes we’re used to– because nannies in Japan were traditionally indentured servants who would sing about how much they want to get the hell away from all these brats.

The lullaby that the film is based on is called Itsuki-no-komori-uta, a famous lullaby about Itsuki village, which is apparently about to get washed away when a new dam is built. The lyrics of the lullaby (GhibliWorld’s translation) are:

I’ll go home at Bon
If Bon comes soon, I can return soon
We are like beggars, but they are the rich
The rich have good sashes and good clothes

If you want to hear the song, clip along to the end of this video from a ’70s Japanese movie– about 4 minutes in, the actress Meiko Kaji sings the lullaby.

Well, at any rate, it’s obvious that Ponyo on a Cliff won’t be Miyazaki’s last flick either. Not that anyone’s in a hurry for him to retire anyway! ;)

Everyone thank roryo for the following news tip, which I just got here at work: Nausicaa.net picked up on word from Variety Asia that Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki’s newest flick, Gake no Ue no Ponyo (Ponyo On a Cliff) has been slated to hit theaters in Japan in mid-July, probably July 19th, which would be a holiday weekend in Japan. Huzzah!

Original source: Variety Japan
Secondary source: Nausicaa.net

So Neil Gaiman, who adapted the script for Mononoke Hime about a million years ago (or, you know, eight), apparently just got around to visiting the Ghibli studio.

The only reason I’m posting about this is because it occurred to me that I’d really like to see a Ghibli-produced anime of Sandman. But I don’t think Miyazaki would go for it. Besides, what would Sandman be without art from about a trillion different people? (Hey, maybe they’d do Neverwhere instead?)