Book Review: The Art of Kiki's Delivery Service

The Art of Kiki's Delivery Service is a charming art book companion for the movie.

Even though Miyazaki's the director, screenwriter and producer for this film, his art is surprisingly missing in this book. This time round, the main contributing artists are Shinji Otsuka, Yoshifumi Kondo and Katsuya Kondo.

The art is still created using watercolours and they are very beautiful. The character designs by Katsuya Kondo are really cool. You can see the different variations of Kiki, her hairstyle, flying poses, expressions and the little mannerisms all captured. His lines and colours are very simple be he can create a really appealing cast of characters. Together with the two other artists Shinji Otsuka and Yoshifumi Kondo, they contribute the majority of the concept art in this book. And they all seem to draw in similar style for the storyboards.

The background paintings for Corico are also marvelous. I love the idyllic setting. Much of the designs are actually inspired from Visby, a city on the Swedish island of Gotland. Looking at the paintings instantly triggers holiday mood. Unfortunately, these unsung heroes of background art aren't credited directly to their work, although a list of names are included at the back of the book.

Most of the art have interesting comments by Miyazaki and the other artists. At the back, there's a section on basic camera techniques and how they are used in the film. And finally, there's the complete screenplay.

Highly recommended for all fans of the film and Studio Ghibli.

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Here's the Amazon Japan buying guide for your reference.