Like Arriettyand the city of Mitaka and Ghibli fans across Japan were fighting for their passions to keepthe doors of the museum open.

As Arrietty from The Secret World Of Arrietty stated, “Sometimes you have to fight for thingsthat are worth fighting for,” which is exactly what the city of Mitaka, Japan city council did earlier this month when The Ghibli Museum faced potential closure due to financial hardships, because of COVID-19’s restrictions. PES 2021

The museum is renowned for its many cherished Ghibli related items and memorabilialike a larger than life-sized replica of the Catbus from My Neighbor Totoro, a ceiling with the style of fresco paintings featuring characters from Kiki’s Delivery Service and a real-life Howl’s Moving Castle – which is currently being constructed as well as having an outdoor café, garden, and theater that shows Ghibli short films. Battle Bay

To get the $10 million needed to pay for repairs and maintenance, the city of Mitaka in Japan began a crowdfunding campaign on the 19th of July in 2021. Donations were sought in increments of 5,000yen, or $45. The council also announced the implementation of the ‘Hometown Tax system’, under where citizens are allowed to donate in any region of the country, and also receive items from the local area, for example, produce. buying basketballs

The fans did not wish for Totoro to be left in the elements, so they began to take action and raised funds within 24 hours. The campaign raised more than double its initial goal as donations exceeded 24 million yen (or $217,017) on the 22nd of July. People living in Japan will be able to make contributions and tax-deductible receipts.

Fans quickly rallied behind the museumas the Studio Ghibli is a great source of inspiration, especially within the gaming community. Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a very popular platform for Ghibli enthusiasts. We’ve seen a lot of gamers making use of codes to design Ghibli-inspired costumes and one person even recreated scenes from Spirited Away. https://www.youtube.com/embed/__4upJ9fKrE

As Sophie Hatter said in Howl’s Moving Castle, “…the brightest fire is the one that shines when circumstances are at their worst” and The Studio Ghibli Museum and the city of Mitaka are evidence of that.