13-year-old witch Kiki takes her cat Jiji and flies away on her broomstick, leaving her family to find an independent new life in a city.

Hayao Miyazaki followed up on his huge success with My Neighbor Totoro (1988) with this adaptation of a popular children’s novel, where the teen witch faces tougher challenges, part of her journey to maturity. The director was inspired by locations in northern Europe, especially Stockholm and Visby, melding together into the charming small town Kiki learns to call home.

Irresistibly friendly, perhaps a tad too harmless at times, but ending with a spectacular airship accident.

1989-Japan. Animated. 102 min. Color. Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Novel: Eiko Kadono. Voices of Minami Takayama (Kiki/Ursula), Rei Sakuma (Jiji), Kappei Yamaguchi (Tombo), Koichi Yamadera, Mieko Nobusawa, Koichi Miura. 

Trivia: Original title: Majo no takkyûbin. In the English-language version, Kirsten Dunst, Phil Hartman, Janeane Garofalo and Debbie Reynolds provided voices. Remade as a live-action film, Kiki’s Delivery Service (2014). Later a stage musical.

Last word: “In the original, Kiki solves difficult problems with her naturally good heart. At the same time her circle of allies increases. In filming this we have had to make a few changes. The process of her developing her talent is surely pleasant but the spirit of our young girls living in the capital today is not so simple. The biggest problem for many young girls is the fight to break through the barrier of independence, and there are too many people who feel they have received not a single blessing. We feel, therefore, in this movie that we must give serious treatment to the problem of independence.” (Miyazaki, “The Art of Kiki’s Delivery Service”)