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Kiki's Delivery Service

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Kiki's Delivery Service

Kiki's Delivery Service is a 1989 Japanese animated fantasy film written, produced, and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, based on Eiko Kadono's 1985 novel Kiki's Delivery Service. Animated by Studio Ghibli, the film stars Minami Takayama, Rei Sakuma, Kappei Yamaguchi, and Keiko Toda. The story follows Kiki (Takayama), a young witch who moves to the port city of Koriko with her cat Jiji (Sakuma) and starts a flying courier service.

In 1987, Group Fudosha asked Kadono's publishers for the rights to the novel to be made into a film by either Miyazaki or Isao Takahata. Production began near the release of My Neighbor Totoro (1988). Miyazaki initially worked as producer, but took over directing from Sunao Katabuchi as he became more involved in the project. As the novel is based on a fictional northern European country, Miyazaki and his team traveled to locations such as Visby, Sweden, to research its landscape. Miyazaki altered the story, adding new scenes to emphasize the theme of independence and growing up. According to Miyazaki, the film portrays the gulf between independence and reliance among teenage Japanese girls.

Kiki's Delivery Service was released in Japan on July 29, 1989, by Toei. It was the first Studio Ghibli film to be successful on initial release, grossing a total of ¥4.3 billion ($31 million). It received critical acclaim and multiple awards.

An English dub was produced by Streamline Pictures for Japan Airlines international flights in 1989. The Walt Disney Studios produced an English dub in 1997, which became the first film under a deal between Tokuma and Disney to be released in English. It was released to home media in 1998.

In a world where witches exist alongside humans, 13-year-old Kiki decides to go out on her own, which all young witches must do when they turn 13, taking her familiar spirit, a talking black cat named Jiji, with her. Her mother insists that she take her mother's old, reliable broomstick. Kiki flies off into the cloudless night when the moon is full, searching for a new town for settlement. She encounters another witch and her cat whom she finds pretentious, but they cause Kiki to wonder what her special "skill" is. Kiki finds the town of Koriko and accidentally flies through traffic, causing disruptions. She is approached by a policeman, but a boy named Tombo helps her escape.

Kiki looks for a place to live and work in her new town. She finds the Gutiokipanja bakery, owned by Osono and her husband, Fukuo, who are expecting a child. Osono invites her to live in a room above the bakery. Kiki opens a business delivering goods by broomstick, known as the "Witch Delivery Service". Her first delivery is of a small stuffed toy of a black cat that resembles Jiji, as a birthday gift for Osono's neighbor's nephew Ket. Along the way, she is caught in the wind and ends up in a forest filled with crows, which attack her, causing her to lose the toy. They come up with a plan in which Jiji pretends to be the toy for Ket until Kiki can retrieve the real one. She finds it in the log cabin of a young painter with crows, Ursula, who repairs and returns it. With the help of Ket's dog Jeff, Kiki successfully retrieves Jiji and replaces him with the stuffed cat.

The next day, Tombo gives her an invitation to visit his aviation club. However, she gets busy with her deliveries, and gets caught in a thunderstorm on her way back. Drenched from the rain, she decides not to go. She then falls ill, but Osono cares for her until she recovers. Osono secretly arranges for Kiki to see Tombo again by assigning her a delivery addressed to him. Kiki apologizes for missing the party, and Tombo takes her for a test ride on the flying machine he is working on, fashioned from a bicycle. Kiki warms up to him, but is once again disgusted by Tombo's friends.

Kiki becomes depressed and discovers she can no longer understand Jiji. She has also lost her flying ability and is forced to suspend her delivery business. Ursula then visits Kiki and invites her go to her cabin. She agrees, and the two spend time together there. Ursula determines that Kiki's crisis is a form of artist's block, and then advises her to find a new purpose, so that she can regain her powers.

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