Studio Ghibli has returned with a new animated project, and it has received an enthusiastic reaction from one of the studio’s most important figures. Goro Miyazaki has revealed that his father, legendary filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki, responded extremely positively to the new short film A Night in the Valley of Witches.
The 14-minute animated short began screening at Ghibli Park on July 8, 2026. Directed by Goro Miyazaki and longtime Studio Ghibli animator Akihiko Yamashita, the film is set inside the park’s Valley of Witches area and marks the studio’s first original short made specifically for Ghibli Park.
Goro Miyazaki Reveals Hayao Miyazaki’s Surprising Reaction
Speaking in a recent discussion about Studio Ghibli’s future, published by Bloomberg, Goro Miyazaki described his father’s reaction to the new short as “insane in a good way.”
The response is notable given the well-documented creative relationship between the two filmmakers. Goro Miyazaki’s directorial debut, Tales From Earthsea, famously received criticism from his father, while his later projects gradually established his own identity as a filmmaker and creative figure within the studio.
His newest project takes inspiration from Ghibli Park’s Valley of Witches, an area influenced by Kiki’s Delivery Service, Howl’s Moving Castle, and Earwig and the Witch. According to the official Ghibli Park website, the story follows a new employee who encounters increasingly strange incidents while working at the park before discovering that magic is very real after dark.
The short runs for approximately 14 minutes and 21 seconds. Goro Miyazaki and Akihiko Yamashita co-directed the project, with Jesse of SixTONES and AiNA THE END providing voices, while Satoshi Takebe composed the music.
Studio Ghibli officially confirmed that A Night in the Valley of Witches is the first original animated short created specifically for Ghibli Park. That connection gives the project a different role from a traditional feature film, as its story is directly tied to a physical location that visitors can explore.
Goro Miyazaki has also played a major role in shaping Ghibli Park, making the project a natural extension of his work with the attraction. The Valley of Witches includes locations inspired by several Studio Ghibli films, including a large-scale recreation of Howl’s Castle and the Guchokipanya Bakery from Kiki’s Delivery Service.
For now, A Night in the Valley of Witches remains exclusive to Ghibli Park’s Screening Room Cinema Orion. The positive reaction from Hayao Miyazaki, however, gives Goro Miyazaki’s latest directorial project an especially significant endorsement.
