By James Reynolds

Marc’s Moving Church

Marc asked us to watch a film that we would never usually consider watching. It was an easy genre choice for me. Fantasy or animation. Or both for full effect.

So when i mentioned this challenge to some friends over Christmas they said that they knew just the film for me.

Howl’s Moving Castle. A Japanese animated fantasy film.

A quick Google search later and I found that it had a remarkably high IMDB score of 8.2/10 but I refrained from reading the synopsis for fear of not going through with it.

After sitting through two hours of this film, trying not to drift off or fall asleep, it confirmed that I still don’t like fantasy animation.

But. I can appreciate it.

The level of creativity in the storytelling, characters and animation is impressive.

The story is set in a fictional kingdom with old magic and new technology.

Much like SCA – Marc’s Moving Church.

There is a young lady named Sophie, who is turned into an old lady by a witch’s curse.

She meets Howl, a wizard who is fighting in a war for the king.

Howl is a handsome chap as you can imagine. Slim, blonde hair, blue eyes, wears earrings. A kind of modern day metrosexual. 

I think I appreciated the film more after I did some research.

It was created by Hayao Miyazaki, master filmmaker/storyteller (who has won countless awards including an Oscar) and Christian Bale and Emily Mortimer starred for the English voiceovers.

It’s amazing how facts like this can influence or determine your opinion on something.

This can also be said for music. Or art. Or advertising.

Knowing that a respected person is responsible for creating something, immediately gives it gravitas. Yet the same work could be created by an unknown and might not get the recognition it deserves.

However behind every respected creator is usually a long history of blood, sweat and tears.

Another reminder that SCA, and your career, is a marathon, not a sprint.