I Love Studio Ghibli, So I Chased These 13 Anime Movies Next

When I want a film that understands distance, this is the one I turn on.

It’s quiet. It’s aching. It’s the kind of romance that doesn’t explode, it dissolves. That’s why it sticks.

I also like having a clean reference page for it, so I still use 5 Centimeters per Second as my go-to quick lookup.

This is the film I recommend when I’m specifically craving “backgrounds that look like they were painted with obsession.”

The story is small, almost fragile, but the visuals are huge. Rain, leaves, reflections. It’s a flex.

It still reads like conventional anime in character design, but the environments do the emotional heavy lifting. I respect that.

This one feels like Shinkai deliberately reaching toward myth and adventure.

It’s also the film where I most clearly see the “Ghibli fan pipeline” happening in real time. The sense of another world. The bittersweet theme of letting go. The willingness to sit in grief without rushing to fix it.

I still see it referenced as Journey to Agartha in some regions, and I like having that link handy.

This is the Shinkai film I watch when I want a story that feels like modern myth.

I love the way it treats weather like a character. Not just scenery. A force with mood and consequences.

The detail obsession shows up everywhere, from faces to city rain to the little movement beats that make the world feel alive. I still think it’s a visual masterclass in meticulously detailed characters and environments.

I put this here because I still think it’s one of the cleanest “gateway” films out of Ghibli and into modern anime movies.

The hook is instantly compelling. The pacing moves. The emotion lands. The visuals are ridiculously polished.

And yes, it’s famous for a reason. I don’t fight popularity when the craft is this good.

Family Friendly Anime Movies Like Studio Ghibli

When I say “family friendly,” I don’t mean “no feelings.”

I mean movies I can watch without bracing myself for emotional devastation every ten minutes.

I like “Mirai” because it feels like childhood from the inside.

It’s about jealousy, change, and learning how to love a new sibling without pretending it’s instantly easy.

The magical garden time shifts are also a fun hook, especially when the story lets the kid traverse time without turning the film into a science lesson.

This one surprised me the first time I watched it.

It has that “small town plus spirits” energy that makes Ghibli fans feel instantly at home.

It also uses grief in a way that feels honest without being cruel. The three goblins are comedic, but they’re also part of the healing mechanism.

And yes, I’m keeping this link because it fits: the goblins feel adjacent to the kind of lore I see in mystical goblins and spirit stories across anime.

I’m not going to pretend this is “light.” It isn’t.

But it is deeply human in a way that reminds me of Ghibli’s best emotional storytelling. Parenthood, sacrifice, identity, and belonging. It’s all here.

Also, the countryside vibe really does give me a Totoro echo, even though the story goes somewhere very different.

Anime Movies Like Studio Ghibli for Adults

Sometimes I’m not looking for cozy.

Sometimes I want animated films that hit hard, but still treat the audience like adults with functioning brains.

This movie is quietly devastating.

It’s about daily life before and during wartime, and it makes the ordinary feel precious. Food. Drawing. Family routines. Small joys that get squeezed by history.

I’m keeping this internal link because it’s exactly the context: it’s the kind of story that sits beside before the war narratives that focus on what conflict does to normal people.

This is another post-war story that stuck with me.

I like how it shows resilience and adaptation without making suffering feel “beautiful.” It just feels real.

The WWII context is unavoidable, and the arrival of Soviet soldiers changes everything about the kids’ lives overnight.

This is not anime, and I still include it on purpose.

Because if what I love about Ghibli is personal storytelling with political weight, “Persepolis” absolutely belongs in the conversation.

It feels like reading someone’s life with the lights off. Intimate. Sharp. Honest.

Mamoru Hosoda Picks That Ghibli Fans Usually Love

Hosoda’s films hit me like “family stories with mythic shadows.”

They feel emotionally accessible, but they still have depth.

I love this movie because it makes time travel feel like a teen problem.

Regret, friendship, awkward timing, and the temptation to “redo” life until it finally feels right. It’s funny, but it also gets real.

This is the one I choose when I want found family energy.

A kid with nowhere to land, a mentor who is not naturally nurturing, and a bond that grows through conflict and effort. That dynamic works on me every time.