Although there have been numerous books and countless articles published about Studio Ghibli and its creations, few, if any, journalists have been able to write about the internal workings of the studio. Steve Alpert, who speaks Japanese fluently, came to Ghibli in 1996 and spent the next decade and a half there as a senior executive and member of the board of directors–the only gaijin (non-Japanese) in what he describes as “a very traditional Japanese company.” In this informal memoir, he offers personal insights into some of the inner working of the celebrated studio.

(Full disclosure: I often worked with Steve Alpert when I wrote about the Ghibli films.)

Much of book focuses on Princess Mononoke, the first Ghibli film to be given a major American theatrical release. Miramax, which was owned by Disney at the time, handled that release.

Even after nearly two years of contract negotiations, the Miramax team apparently had no idea who Miyazaki was, the importance of his film was or how to promote it. They were convinced Princess Mononoke would never attract American viewers. These executives wanted to rewrite and re-edit it, censor sequences they felt were inappropriate for children, then add sound effects, music and dialogue. Harvey Weinstein, who demanded he be allowed to cut the film by nearly one-third, appears as a loud, bullying vulgarian.

Alpert had to try to referee an endless string of conflicts that pitted the Studio Ghibli team and writer Neil Gaiman, who wanted to provide an intelligent and accurate translation of the film, against the Miramax crew, who were determined to make the film “saleable.” Happily, Alpert and his allies thwarted their plans.

Spirited Away fared somewhat better when it was released by Disney, although many animators and journalists felt the film deserved much more attention than the company gave it. The film won numerous prizes, and Alpert became the designated acceptor, collecting awards to bring home to Ghibli, including the Golden Bear from the 52nd Berlin Film Festival (2002) and the Oscar for Best Animated Feature from the 75th Academy Awards in 2003.

Awards season seems to drag on endlessly, but Miyazaki rarely attends the ceremonies. Alpert explains, “It’s not that Hayao Miyazaki doesn’t appreciate the honor of being chosen to receive an award. He just doesn’t like to stand up in person and be praised….Also, like many people who are very good at what they do, he really (really) hates to lose… ”

And “When Miyazaki signed off on one of its films and it was officially done, he preferred to never think about that film again. It was done. There was nothing more he could do to improve or change it. He always wanted to be moving forward and thinking about the next film.” (Interestingly, that attitude is similar to Walt Disney’s. He was never interested in sequels, and worked to continue improving Disneyland, which he couldn’t do to a film.)

Alpert also had to deal with Yasuyoshi Tokuma, the owner of the publishing company Tokuma Shoten, which financed some of the Ghibli films and owned the studio for a time. Dealing with and translating for this flamboyant, freewheeling executive proved challenging, to say the least. But Alpert worked most closely with producer and executive Toshio Suzuki. He follows Suzuki through the tangles of negotiations, deals and hassles involved in making and releasing animated films, offering a warm, engaging portrait of an important figure in world animation who has received less media attention than he deserves in the US.

Curiously, what’s missing from the book is any mention of how Alpert served as a model and the original voice for Hans Castorp (named for the hero of Thomas Mann’s “Magic Mountain”) in Miyzaki’s The Wind Rises (2013). (Werner Herzog provided the voice in the English dub.)

“Sharing a House” belongs in the library of anyone interested in the Studio Ghibli artists and their films.

Sharing a House with the Never-Ending Man: 15 Years at Studio Ghibli
by Steve Alpert
Stone Bridge Press: 296 pp., illustrated: $45.00, hardcover; $19.95, paperback; $16.95, e-book