Whisper of the Heart and The Cat Returns
Manga by Aoi Hiiragi, films by Studio Ghibli
In 1995 Studio Ghibli released a movie entitled "Whisper of the Heart" (Mimi o Sumaseba, or "If You Listen Closely") based on a manga by Aoi Hiiragi about a young girl writing a fantasy novel. Although the girl's life had no magical elements, short fantasy scenes depicted what the girl was writing about. Those short scenes were so popular that fans demanded that a movie be made of the fictional girl's novel: that movie was Neko no Ongaeshi ("The Cat's Return of a Favor"). The Cat Returns began life as the "Cat Project" in 1999. Studio Ghibli received a request from a Japanese theme park to create a 20 minute short starring cats. Miyazaki wanted 3 key things to feature in the short: the Baron, Muta (Moon) and a mysterious antique shop. Aoi Hiiragi was commissioned to create the manga equivalent of the short, called Baron: Neko no Danshaku ("Baron: the Cat Baron"). [taken from Wikipedia] Both films have been released in English, and the second manga has been released as "Baron: the Cat Returns". The original manga for "Mimi o Sumaseba" has yet to be released in English.
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