Toshio Suzuki facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Toshio Suzuki
Suzuki at the Venice premiere of Howl's Moving Castle in 2004
Born	(1948-08-19) August 19, 1948 (age 76) Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
Alma mater	Keio University
Occupation	Film producer Co-Founder and chairman of Studio Ghibli
Years active	1972–present
Employer	Tokuma Shoten (1972–1989) Studio Ghibli (1989–present)

Toshio Suzuki (born August 19, 1948) is a famous Japanese film producer. He is one of the people who started Studio Ghibli. He used to be its president and is now its chairman.

Early Life and Early Career

Suzuki was born in Nagoya, Japan, in 1948. He went to Keio University and finished his studies in 1972. He got a degree in literature.

After college, Suzuki started working at a company called Tokuma Shoten. He worked for a magazine about entertainment. There, he met many film directors and artists. He also became an editor for a magazine called Animage. This magazine was all about anime and manga.

How Studio Ghibli Began

As an editor for Animage, Suzuki met two important animators: Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki. They had worked on a film called Horus, Prince of the Sun. Suzuki wanted to write about them in his magazine.

Suzuki and Miyazaki became good friends. Suzuki helped Miyazaki create his famous manga comic, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. He also helped turn this comic into an animated movie. The movie came out in 1984.

After the success of the Nausicaä movie, Studio Ghibli was started in June 1985. Both Miyazaki and Takahata have said that Studio Ghibli would not exist without Toshio Suzuki. He played a very important part in making the studio happen.

Producing Films at Studio Ghibli

Suzuki officially joined Studio Ghibli in 1989 as a producer. He helped make many of their most loved films.

Key Films Produced

• In 1986, he worked on Laputa: Castle in the Sky.
• In 1988, he helped produce My Neighbor Totoro and Grave of the Fireflies. He suggested releasing them together in theaters.
• He was an associate producer for Kiki's Delivery Service in 1989.
• He produced Only Yesterday (1991) and Porco Rosso (1992).
• In 1993, he oversaw Ocean Waves, a TV movie.
• He produced Pom Poko (1994) and Whisper of the Heart (1995).
• He also produced the very popular Princess Mononoke (1997).
• In 1997, Studio Ghibli joined with Tokuma Shoten, and Suzuki became the first president of the combined company.
• He produced My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999).
• In 2001, he produced the Oscar-winning film Spirited Away. This movie won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2003.
• He also produced The Cat Returns (2002) and Howl's Moving Castle (2004).

Later Years and Retirement

In 2004, Studio Ghibli became its own independent company, and Suzuki became its president. He stepped down from this role in 2008 but continued to work as a film producer.

In 2014, Suzuki retired from being a full-time producer. However, he still helps with many projects. He was a co-producer for The Red Turtle (2016). He was also the main producer for Earwig and the Witch (2020) and The Boy and the Heron (2023).

Awards and Recognition

Toshio Suzuki has received many awards for his work as a film producer.

Academy Awards

He has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature several times:

• For The Wind Rises (2014).
• For The Red Turtle (2017).
• He won the award for The Boy and the Heron (2024). He did not attend the ceremony in person due to his age.

Other Awards

• In 2014, he won the Grand Prize at the MEXT Art Encouragement Prizes for his work on The Wind Rises and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.
• In 2022, he received the Winsor McCay Award at the Annie Awards. This award honors people who have made great contributions to animation.

Filmography

Images for kids

• 

  Suzuki at the Venice premiere of Howl's Moving Castle in 2004

See also

In Spanish: Toshio Suzuki (productor) para niños