Will Studio Ghibli Films Stop Streaming in Russia?

The major streaming service for Studio Ghibli films in Russia is losing rights to the library after May. Will fans go back to pirating?

By Noah Oskow

For Studio Ghibli, Japan’s most famous animation house, the Russian connection runs deep.

Miyazaki Hayao, co-founder of Ghibli and director of such globally beloved fare as Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, and My Neighbor Totoro, was majorly influenced by Soviet animation during the 1960s. He’s cited 1957’s The Snow Queen (by Armenian director Lev Atamanov) as a major influence. He even went so far as to imply it kept him working in animation when he was considering quitting the industry. Late co-founder Takahata felt similarly about many Russian and Soviet films.

But now, as the invasion of Ukraine rumbles on in the background, it appears streaming rights to Ghibli films may be up in the air. [1]

One streamer goes down…another rises?

On May 25th, the Russian Federation’s largest news agency, TASS, reported that local streaming giant Kinopoisk had been unable to renew a contract with Studio Ghibli to host their films. According to Yahoo Japan, the invasion of Ukraine…