Princess Mononoké - The Forest of Spirits

Here I am again with a project based on a Studio Ghibli anime. I'd so much like to see Lego release sets based on the Ghibli license that I'm back with this new project.

The 90s were marked by Miyazaki's masterpiece, Princess Mononoké , released in 1997 .

It's one of the best-known and most acclaimed works by its author, and one of the greatest successes in the history of Japanese cinema. My favorite Studio Ghibli film.

 

Miyasaki has succeeded in creating a film that explores many themes and captivates the viewer with its intrigue, magic and symbolism. The film is a testament to the power of nature and the need for man to find a balance with it.

In the scene I've chosen to depict, I wanted to take you on a journey into the forest where the forest spirits live, in the company of Ashitaka, his mount Yakkuru and San's character “Princess Mononoke”. These are the main characters of the story.

I wanted to represent these characters using an assembly of lego pieces, rather than lego figurines. This allowed me to show the characters in greater detail and make them larger. Above all, it allows me to articulate them further, so I can show them in different postures. So, we can either show them walking through the forest, or position them on the mount. This leaves the user free to choose to build their own scene.

For me, it was a challenge to change the scale of this construction from my previous projects, which allowed me to further explore the possibilities offered by Lego constructions.

The set is punctuated by vegetation, trees, rocks and a small stretch of river, which seem to be inhabited by forest spirits (sylvans) who can light up in the dark.

The fact that the scenery and characters are based on the same construction principle (an assembly of Lego pieces). Allows me to put nature and the characters on the same level. Nature being as important as the “human” characters, which is the message that appears in this anime.

 

For the colors, I used a chromatic range found in the film.

The whole project comprises around 2,550 pieces.

 

I hope you enjoy discovering this project as much as I enjoyed making it. See you soon