The Imaginary, Netflix’s newest anime movie from Studio Ponoc, hails from a hallowed team of creatives. Director Yoshiyuki Momose was part of Studio Ghibli for three decades, serving as key animator on iconic films such as Whisper of the Heart, Spirited Away, and Tales from Earthsea. Yoshiaki Nishimura, meanwhile, is the screenwriter and producer of the movie, as well as the founder of Studio Ponoc.

Based on the children’s book by A.F Harrold, The Imaginary follows a young girl named Amanda and her imaginary friend Rudger. When the strange and mysterious Mr. Bunting separates them for his own malevolent purposes, a strange narrative shift occurs. The movie becomes about Rudger and what his existence means without the presence of his creator, leading him to meet a cast of colorful characters all as imaginary as he is.

Screen Rant interviewed Nishimura about his original vision for The Imaginary, his collaboration with director Yoshiyuki Momose, and what he’s taken away from his past work with Studio Ghibli. (Note: The interview was conducted through an interpreter, and the answers have been translated from Japanese.)

Translating The Imaginary From Page To Animated Screen

Screen Rant: The world of imaginary friends is a very rich one to mine. What was it about A.F Harrold’s novel in particular that really stood out to you?

Yoshiaki Nishimura: When I first read the original story, it was interesting and fun, but scary. I really enjoyed the book itself, but something that really attracted me was the special setting of the story. In many stories that I’ve seen, whether the child character meets E.T. or Totoro, the story is told from their perspective.

I felt what was so special about this story was that the main character is the boy created through a girl’s imagination. If something happens to this girl, no one in the world could ever even see this boy. My hunch was that if we can depict this, then maybe we could start depicting something that’s very important but unseen.

What was your approach to adapting the novel into a screenplay, especially because the visual style of Emily Gravett’s illustrations is so significant to the story?

Yoshiaki Nishimura: The visuals, of course, are very different. We had to take a different approach, and something that I really wanted to make sure that we valued was understanding the core message of the story. Rather than trying to create similar images, I tried to stay aligned with the original creator about the message. Because it’s about the imagination and told through animation, if you want to create something, you can create anything.

What was very important was, because it’s animation and an imaginary world, we had to make sure that we could depict the reality of the human lives in the story. That’s the part I really focused on.

Can you tell me about your collaboration with Yoshiyuki Momose and whether you had any back-and-forth in terms of what to include or how to express certain elements?

Yoshiaki Nishimura: Mr. Momose worked in Studio Ghibli for many years. His creations there have distinctive characteristics, and he’s someone who was able to create new technology using different tools and expressions. That’s why I felt that he would be the best match for this film.

I asked him to become the director for this film, in which we are using the “light and shadow” animation technique. There aren’t many people who can utilize this new technology very well, and there aren’t many creators who would say, “Hey, let’s try it out and go with this.” It’s hard to find someone like that, but when I found this technology and communicated it to Momose-san, he understood immediately and said, “With this, we can do that!” and expanded it.

My style is really about communicating closely with the director as a producer as we keep making the work. In our studio, there isn’t that much of a difference in the roles of writer, director, and producer. We create together; that’s our approach.

How Studio Ponoc Feels About Their Studio Ghibli Legacy

I know you and Mr. Momose have both worked with Studio Ghibli before, as did other creatives who helped with The Imaginary. How do you hope Studio Ponoc distinguishes itself from Studio Ghibli in general, and what do you think your creative signature will be?

Yoshiaki Nishimura: For those of us who worked in Studio Ghibli, whether for 10 years or 30 years, the history and the spirit of how you create animation in the studio remains in us. Our past with Ghibli is something we cherish and embrace.

There are two things that are very important as we continue to create work moving forward. Personally, I feel that there are so many more possibilities to hand-drawn, hand-painted animation. We used “light and shadow” this time, of course, but I want to continue challenging ourselves and finding new things.

Another thing is that the situation children are facing changes over time. It’s different in every era. It’s important for us to sit with the children, share experiences, and keep in touch with their needs. We named ourselves Studio Ponoc, which in Croatian means midnight. So, the old and new days are connected at midnight.

The Imaginary is Studio Ponoc’s second feature film. What lessons did you learn during Mary and the Witch’s Flower that you were able to apply here?

Yoshiaki Nishimura: Mary and the Witch’s Flower was the first animated movie we made after creating the Studio Ponoc. First, it was only the director and I; we didn’t even have the studio. We built the studio, and within two and a half years, we had to create a film. As you can imagine, audiences around the world were expecting Studio Ghibli quality from our new studio, which was such a high standard to meet. But we felt that, through Mary and the Witch’s Flower, we could achieve that quality. That’s why we could move forward.

It was difficult dealing with an imaginary character as the main character, and we also incorporated new technology, which wasn’t easy. But the journey of our studio truly started with The Imaginary. I mean, that’s how I feel.

The Imaginary’s Cast (In Both Languages) Get Credit For How The Movie’s Unique Feel

I adore Sakura Ando, who voices Amanda’s mother Lizzie, but this is my first time hearing her rather than seeing her. How did she join the project and what makes her such an excellent voice actor?

Yoshiaki Nishimura: Yeah, she is very amazing as a live-action movie star. This was her first time doing voiceover for animation, and she’s an actor who is very selective about what roles she would do. So, when we provided her with a script, she called us immediately the following day and said, “Please let me do this role.”

Sakura Ando is amazing, but we also have amazing actors in the English version: Hayley Atwell as Lizzie, Louie Rudge-Buchanan as Rudger, Evie Kiszel as Amanda, and Jeremy Swift as Mr. Bunting. Even LeVar Burton as The Old Dog!

We don’t call either the English or Japanese versions the dubbed version. We select the English-speaking actors ourselves. Animation is a fantasy that is driven by visuals, but it really depends on the actors’ performances to ground itself. The actors all did such great work to convey the story’s emotion, and I’m so grateful to everyone.

Finally, if you had to select an imaginary friend to accompany you now, which of the members of the Library would you choose?

Yoshiaki Nishimura: It’s very hard to choose one because I have so much attachment to all the imaginary characters. When I was creating the script, I pretended to be each one of the imaginaries, which is why it’s hard to choose just one.

But if I had to pick, it would be Cruncher-of-Bones, who transforms himself kind of panda style. [Voice actor] Courtenay Taylor helps you feel his feelings. Audience just smile and laugh, and even now, I’m hoping for his happiness. He doesn’t have many lines, but he’s very dear to me.

The Imaginary is now streaming on Netflix.