Whisper of the Heart, Yoshifumi Kondo’s sole feature film, is reaching French cinemas for the first time following a recent restoration. The 1995 Studio Ghibli production had previously been seen in France through festivals and home video.
The film was the first Ghibli feature directed by someone other than the studio’s founders, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata. Kondo, a respected animator whom Miyazaki had considered as a potential successor, died in early 1998 at 47 from a ruptured aneurysm attributed to overwork.
Whisper of the Heart was a major Japanese box-office success in 1995, ranking first with reported takings of 3.15 billion yen, equivalent to about 17 million euros. The film remains Kondo’s only directorial feature.
Sources: Le Monde Culture.