Miyazaki Bootlegger Arrested in Japan

According to the Japanese newspaper Gifu Shimbun, Aoki Yoshinori (age 33) and his wife Wakako (age 29), Tokyo video retailers, were arrested on November 22nd for selling illegal copies of storyboards from the Studio Ghibli anime feature Mimi wo Sumaseba (Whisper of the Heart). Miyazaki Hayao originally distributed the storyboards only among his 100 employees. Aoki and his wife put up the A4 sized copies of the storyboards for sale on an auction site, saying “Miyazaki’s storyboards are stimulating. If you are Miyazaki fan, you must buy them.” They sold three volumes between April and July for 15000 yen each, about $135 US. Storyboards for several of Miyazaki’s films are available from publishers; however, storyboards for Whisper of the Heart have not been published.

Source: Anime News Network