Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, an 1984 film based on a 12th century Japanese folktale, is one of Hayao Miyazaki’s most important works that a lot of people in the West haven’t even heard about. In this episode we sat down with independent cinema expert Flick Beckett (who has just seen the film […]
The Prophecy of Nausicaä – Moon Rabbit Podcast #002
The Ritual Origins of Cinema – Moon Rabbit Podcast #001
Going into a dark space to watch moving images on the wall seems like a recent thing, but humans have been doing it for tens of thousands of years. In this first episode of the Moon Rabbit Podcast, I sat down with independent cinema expert Flick Beckett to discuss the mythological elements of the cinema-going […]
Welcome to the Moon Rabbit podcast! (intro episode #000)
How to listen to the Moon Rabbit Podcast Right here, right now: Click on the big play button above. Magic! Take it with you: Download the mp3 for this episode by clicking here! iTunes, Spotify, Podcast Addict, etc. coming soon! Read along with the episode below. This is the Moon Rabbit Podcast – full transcript […]
If you wanna pop down to the underworld, today’s the day
Something caught my eye yesterday as I passed by my favourite taco place in Brighton (Casa Azul – you must go, the things they do with mushrooms!) The owner, Gabriel, had repurposed one of the tables as a makeshift altar, lovingly arranged with candles, sweetbread, bottles of tequila and black-and-white photos hanging above on a piece of string. I’ve […]
The Moon Rabbit Hotline is ready to take your call
Welcome to the Moon Rabbit Hotline! As you might already know, I’m starting a new podcast using a mixture of storytelling research and insider film industry experience to dig deep into what makes the kind of transformative film storytelling that changes people’s lives. And now, with a few clicks and a microphone-enabled device, you can […]
Howl’s Moving Castle Explained: Character Analysis and Main Themes
In Howl’s Moving Castle, Hayao Miyazaki flips his own script and instead of making a coming-of-age film, he makes a film-where-people-should-have-come-of-age-but-didn’t, shaping his story around how to grow up if you’re already an adult. Howl’s Moving Castle is unique in the sense that it’s like a setup for a sitcom: it takes characters that have […]