Studio Ghibli’s Hidden Contribution to Dragon Ball: The Path to Power

Dragon Ball has been an anime titan for years now, and which means a number of studios have labored on Dragon Ball content material in that timeframe. In actual fact, even the legendary Studio Ghibli has contributed to Dragon Ball, in one of many least identified motion pictures: Dragon Ball: The Path to Energy.

Dragon Ball: The Path to Energy was an anime movie that was launched in 1996 to have a good time the 10-year anniversary of the Dragon Ball anime. It is primarily a reboot/retelling of the start of Dragon Ball, condensed down into a movie. It was additionally the final Dragon Ball film to be made till Battle of Gods got here out in 2013.

Dragon Ball: The Path to Energy Obtained Animation Assist from Ghibli

Toei Animation Had the Assist of Ghibli on the Movie

Whereas Dragon Ball: The Path to Energy was animated by Toei Animation, identical to the remainder of Dragon Ball‘s franchise, they did not create the film with out help. It is not unusual for animation studios to subcontract different animation studios to assist with the manufacturing of huge tasks like this, and on this case, one such studio was Ghibli.

Ghibli’s identify could be seen within the credit of the movie, and is listed within the credit on Anime News Network’s anime encyclopedia entry. Ghibli offered help for the principle studio, which regularly means in-betweening, backgrounds, or the like, though their contribution is listed as “manufacturing help.”

Ghibli was removed from the one supporting studio on this specific movie, however is definitely one of many extra notable. They’ve carried out help work on all kinds of anime, together with backgrounds for Bleach: Hell Verse, In-between animation for Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, and even labored on Evangelion episode #11.

Ghibli’s Help Made Dragon Ball: The Path to Energy Doable

The Assist Studios Present Important Help to Meet Deadlines

Whereas help studios do not usually get talked about in discussions of anime, their assistance is steadily important to getting the venture out on time and inside funds. It is fairly frequent, even for well-known studios like Ghibli, to tackle help work serving to to supply anime for different manufacturing studios, which helps maintain staff busy.

In actual fact, Toei has even repaid the favor, serving to to work on some Ghibli tasks, such as Earwig and the Witch, the place they had been equally credited with “manufacturing help.” It is definitely attention-grabbing to consider what tasks would’ve been happening on the identical time; Princess Mononoke was possible developed alongside work on The Path to Energy.

Whereas it is in the end little greater than a enjoyable little bit of trivia, it is attention-grabbing to understand that a lot of Japan’s biggest animation studios rely closely upon each other. Whereas there’s clearly nonetheless competitors within the remaining merchandise, animation studios could be extra collaborative than aggressive at instances.

It is not fairly the identical as a Dragon Ball film made solely by Ghibli, however followers can no less than know that these titans of animation have truly labored collectively and collaborated earlier than, and maybe some day will work collectively once more.