The Magic of Hand-Drawn Animation: A 4-Second Scene Took 15 Months to Create

In an era where tools like ChatGPT help us create stunning “Ghibli” style images in mere seconds, it’s hard to imagine the level of effort and dedication that went into creating animations in the past. Did you know that in 2013, a 4-second scene in an animated movie took a staggering 15 months to complete?

Legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki included a breathtaking scene in his film *The Wind Rises* in 2013, which was entirely hand-drawn. No CGI or computer graphics were used. This remarkable sequence was brought to life by animator Eiji Yamamori, who spent 15 months meticulously creating it.

Since animation runs at 24 frames per second, a total of 96 unique images had to be created for just this 4-second scene. This meant that on average, only about 6.4 images were completed per month. To make the scene truly special, every character was given its own identity, movement, and story, making them stand out even in a crowd.

Each frame was hand-drawn and painted with watercolors, infusing the scene with a magical realism that is hard to replicate. The level of detail and effort that went into each second of this animation is a testament to how complex and time-consuming the process once was.

It’s incredible to think about how much time and labor went into creating animated scenes in the past, sometimes taking months or even years to finish a single frame. Today, with the help of advanced tools like ChatGPT and other modern technologies, we can create similar beautiful scenes in just a few seconds, with little effort required. A single click, and we have a stunning “Ghibli-style” image right in front of us, something that took decades of hard work to achieve in the past.