Facts / Spirited Away

6 Spirited Away Facts You Probably Didn't Know

The Oscar winner and the girl who inspired it.

千と千尋の神隠し · Since 2001 · Studio Ghibli · Hayao Miyazaki

1. It was the first anime to win an Oscar

   Spirited Away won Best Animated Feature at the 2003 Academy Awards. Miyazaki's The Boy and the Heron became the second anime to win that award, in 2024.

2. It was Japan's box office champion for 19 years

   Spirited Away was the highest-grossing film in Japan from 2001 until Demon Slayer: Mugen Train passed it in 2020.

3. A real 10-year-old inspired Chihiro

   Miyazaki wrote the film for the daughter of a friend, wanting to make a heroine for girls her age.

4. It also won the Golden Bear

   Spirited Away shared the top prize at the 2002 Berlin International Film Festival, rare for an animated film.

5. Pixar led the English dub

   John Lasseter, a longtime Miyazaki admirer, served as executive producer on Disney's English-language release.

6. Her new name is a pun

   Yubaba takes most of the characters of Chihiro's name, leaving Sen (千), which is another reading of the first character.

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