Spirited Away

A 2001 animated film directed by Hayao Miyazaki, following Chihiro as she works in a bathhouse for spirits to free her parents and return home.

Chihiro Ogino: A ten-year-old girl who becomes a worker in a supernatural bathhouse after her parents are transformed. Her choices and changing identity anchor the film's journey.
Shikigami: Paper talismans in Japanese folklore that can be animated or used by practitioners of ritual magic. Zeniba's paper bird attacks Haku using a recognizable spirit-world device.
Hayao Miyazaki: A Japanese animator, filmmaker, and co-founder of Studio Ghibli. He wrote and directed the film, shaping its images and moral ambiguity.
Academy Award for Best Animated Feature: An annual Academy Award honoring excellence in feature-length animation. The film won the award in 2003, the first non-English-language winner.
Yubaba: A powerful witch who runs a bathhouse for spirits and controls workers through contracts. Her contract strips Chihiro of her name and sets the central challenge.
Japanese bathhouse: A public bathing establishment in Japan, traditionally organized around communal washing and bathing. The bathhouse's familiar social routines make its supernatural workplace legible.
Studio Ghibli: A Japanese animation studio founded in 1985 by Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki. The film was produced by the studio whose hand-drawn style it exemplifies.
Golden Bear: The top prize awarded at the Berlin International Film Festival. The film shared the 2002 prize, an unusual honor for an animated feature.
Haku: A mysterious boy who serves Yubaba and helps Chihiro in the spirit world. His forgotten identity connects the bathhouse plot to the film's concern with memory.
Contract: A formal agreement that establishes obligations between parties. Yubaba uses written contracts to bind workers and take their names.

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