Ghibli’s Best Coming-of-Age Stories, Ranked

Coming-of-age is the most popular kind of character arc in Studio Ghibli films. Coming-of-age stories can be very varied, and even occur at different ages and surround different themes. Most commonly, they are stories where a child learns what it means to go from childhood into adulthood.

In some movies, it means learning lessons while establishing autonomy. Some characters learn what their true life passions and vocations could be. Other protagonists learn how to make peace with the past and determine what it means to them as they transition into adulthood. Coming-of-age doesn’t always come all at once; sometimes it comes in pieces.

10 Shizuku Unlocks Her Creativity

Whisper of the Heart

Shizuku is an avid reader in Whisper of the Heart, and the seeds of creativity sprout slowly and quietly in her brain, waiting for just the right amount of sunshine to bloom. People often know somewhere in the back of their mind for a long time that they want to be an artist. Sometimes it takes certain events to trigger their creativity.

For Shizuku, reading extensively at the library prepped her mind for its creative paths. Artists are never born out of a vacuum, and Shizuku’s well-tended mind comes alive when she sees a statue of a cat called The Baron. Shizuku also experiences first love in Whisper of the Heart, which is a very popular coming-of-age theme, but tapping into her creativity and figuring out that she wants to be a writer is perhaps the most interesting part of her coming-of-age story.

9 Haru Stands Up for Herself

The Cat Returns

Haru struggles socially in school in The Cat Returns. She has an unrequited crush, and she isn’t very confident. Her best friend doesn’t help matters, either, as she can be rather acerbic and underlines how Haru sometimes feels like the odd man out. Struggling with identity and developing confidence is a huge part of growing up.

Haru has a backbone, she just needs to learn how to tap into it. She does this when protecting others, like when she risks herself to save the Cat Prince from getting run over by a bus. The Cat King tries to drag Haru much too far into adulthood when he tries to orchestrate her marrying his son, the Cat Prince. Though Haru is by no means ready for marriage, she learns how to confidently fight back when someone tries to bully her around. Standing up for herself against a tyrant like the Cat King teaches Haru that she can trust herself.

8 Marnie and Anna Explore Generational Trauma

When Marnie Was There

When Marnie Was There centers around two young girls who become unlikely friends. Marnie is an abused and isolated child, and her newcomer friend Anna struggles with self-confidence. Anna is raised in the foster care system, and she understandably struggles to understand why her parents would “abandon” her. She also assumes incorrectly that her foster parent can’t possibly love her.

Sometimes a person can’t move forward with their life until they understand and make peace with their past. For Anna, the more she learns about her family history, the more she can understand herself. Having compassion for the women in her family helps her have compassion for herself, and she grows from the experience. Every child naturally wants to feel loved and safe, and Anna can finally let herself feel loved once she understands the truth of her past.

7 Taeko Decides What Kind of Life She Wants to Live

Only Yesterday

Taeko is a single woman on the cusp of thirty in Only Yesterday. Most people, whether they want to admit it or not, never fully let go of their childhood. Like Taeko, many people walk alongside their inner child as they navigate adulthood. The more Taeko understands her childhood self and her yearning for the past, the more she understands what she really needs and wants as an adult.

Being an adult doesn’t always mean returning home, but for Taeko, returning home to the countryside is a big part of growing up. As she decides what she wants to do with her life, she’s reminded of all the smaller moments that led up to that point — the first time she felt the sting of love, the brutal awkwardness of early adolescence, the first time she experienced true grief. Taeko shows that growing up isn’t linear, but every new stage brings a certain kind of freedom.

6 Chihiro Is Separated from Her Parents for the First Time

Spirited Away

Children often get frustrated and upset with their parents, like Chihiro does at the beginning of Spirited Away. But frustration aside, most children ultimately view their parents as gods. Understanding that parents are humans capable of mistakes is a huge, and sometimes painful, part of growing up. Chihiro experiences that when she witnesses her parents transform into pigs because of their impulsivity and carelessness.

Chihiro is in a terrifying position for a child, separated from her cursed pig parents; she’s the only one who can help them, rather than the other way around. It’s a very frightening and isolating experience, and since Chihiro is so young, she understandably needs a lot of help from others. This first brush with autonomy and separation teaches Chihiro how to reach out to the right people for help, and how to be brave.

5 Arrietty Exercises Discernment

The Secret Word of Arrietty

Arrietty understood from a very young age that her family needs secrecy to be protected in The Secret World of Arrietty. Arrietty’s mother, Homily Clock, worries over her husband whenever he leaves the house for borrowing trips. Pod Clock solemnly teaches Arrietty the cost of being discovered by humans.

The tiny Borrower family lives in the walls and under the floorboards, living off of thimble-sized groceries “borrowed” right under human noses. If humans discover them, they need to abandon their homes and find a new secret place right away, or else they risk their very lives. Arrietty takes a significant step toward adulthood and autonomy when her father, Pod, teaches her how to borrow. She also tests her own discernment when she finds one single human to trust, Sho.

4 Nausicaa Navigates Grief

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

Nausicaa is braver than most people in Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. Her kingdom and her privileged place in it shield her from the worst dangers of the world, but she doesn’t let that make her ignorant or complacent. She studies her world, its inhabitants, and the pollutants that are killing everyone.

Pollution decimates entire villages and species, but Nausicaa doesn’t directly feel the world’s grief until she witnesses her father’s murder. This first test could be her undoing, and for a moment, Nausicaa nearly lets her bitter pain and anger overwhelm her. Her mentor, Lord Yupa, teaches her how to hold onto her mind and scruples rather than give in to vengeful violence.

3 Satsuki Takes Care of Her Little Sister

My Neighbor Totoro

Some children have to confront their parents’ mortality at a tender age like Satsuki does in My Neighbor Totoro. Satsuki and Mei’s father, Tatsuo, does a wonderful job of insulating and supporting his children while their mother battles a serious illness in a sanatorium — but even the best parent can’t hide some realities of the situation.

Satsuki is the older sister. She takes on some extra responsibility for taking care of her sister and helping her hardworking and nurturing father. Satsuki’s also old enough to understand that her mother may die. She has weak moments when she loses her patience with her sister, Mei, especially when her mother has a health scare. But she navigates her fear and takes care of her sister beautifully, reaching out to others (like Granny and Totoro) when she’s out of her depth.

2 Sophie’s Thrown Into a New Phase of Life

Howl’s Moving Castle

Howl’s Moving Castle begins with Sophie Hatter as a hardworking and quiet young woman. She doesn’t think much of herself compared to her beautiful and vivacious sister, but she seems to enjoy her solitary work making hats. Coming-of-age stories traditionally detail the passage between childhood into adolescence and early adulthood, but Sophie’s story explores aging and identity a bit differently.

Sophie Hatter’s elderly curse sets her free. Experiencing the world as an older woman forces her to confront and work through some of her insecurities. She realizes that her self-worth isn’t directly associated with her looks. Her looks are the least interesting part of her. Living as an elderly woman gives her a taste of throwing caution to the wind, and shows her how not to take her own life for granted.

1 Kiki Lives & Works On Her Own for the First Time

Kiki’s Delivery Service

Kiki is a young and precocious witch-in-training eager to branch out on her own in Kiki’s Delivery Service. Traditionally, witches learn as much as they can from their mothers at home until they turn thirteen. At thirteen, they’re supposed to leave home and find a town of their own that needs a resident witch to set up shop.

Kiki doesn’t have as many skills as other witches her age, but she’s excited about taking her first big test. Kiki is optimistic and creative, using her best witch skills to start a flying delivery service. Not everything is easy for Kiki, though. She learns how to balance her budget, and how to be frugal. Her first big lesson as a young adult is the importance of rest. The exuberant energy of youth will only carry a person so far, and she learns to find a balance between work and rest.