This pilot is remembered, really, for one notable reason: this is Miyazaki's first time as a solo director. He teamed up with Takahata for the later episodes of the 1971-72 Lupin III series, but Yuki's Sun marked his first time solely in the captain's seat. Yuki's Sun was based upon a popular shoujo manga (girls' comic) by Tetsuya Chiba which was serialized in 1963. It involves a 10-year-old orphan girl who is adopted into a family. The storyline is somewhat complex, and seems to play out like grand melodrama. Chiba's stories were more sophisticated and grown-up than, say, Osamu Tezuka, who of course was the godfather of postwar Japanese manga. (Source: TheGhibliBlog)

Genres

Cast

Mayo Suzukaze

Snow Queen (voice)

Ayako Kawasumi

Gerda (voice)

Rio Natsuki

Kay (voice)

Noriko Hidaka

Nina (voice)

Masahiro Takashima

Carl (voice)

Tetsuo Goto

Red Troll (voice)

Masako Jo

Yohanne (voice)

Takuma Suzuki

Green Troll (voice)

Akio Otsuka

The Avatar of the Wind (voice)

Junko Midori

Matilda (voice)

Kiyomi Asai

Olga (voice)

Masaru Ikeda

Matias (voice)