Studio Ghibli AU

Studio Ghibli AU is an AU in the fandom where the Big Four play roles from Hayao Miyazaki's films from his studio. This can be considered an offshoot to Fairy Tale AU and Anime AU.

About the AU
Spawning from fanart, this AU places the Big Four, and other such characters in the fandom, as characters from director Hayao Miyazaki's animated films of Japan's beloved fairy and fantasy tales.

Studio Ghibli's animations have the characters find themselves in trouble, fight to fix and set things right, the villains turn over a leaf in the end and stepping into a world of fantasy that changes them. Studio Ghibli's logo is one of the main characters in My Neighbor Totoro (which Baymax is commonly portrayed as) one of the many films where people step from the world they know into a world that helps them find themselves and their place in the world.

Popular Scenarios

 * Howl's Moving Castle
 * My Neighbor Totoro
 * Kiki's Delivery Service
 * Princess Mononoke
 * Spirited Away
 * The Secret World of Arrietty
 * Laputa: Castle in the Sky
 * Ponyo
 * Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
 * The Wind Rises
 * When Marnie was There

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III
For the Hijack pairing and Hiccup's love of flying casts him as Tombo Kopoli from Kiki's Delivery Service, Pazu from Laputa: Castle in the Sky and as a male Chihiro Ogino, a human that is trapped in a bathhouse for spirits in Spirited Away. His flying skills, being the prince of his people and cares about large, deadly creatures that others see as monsters, can even portray him as a male version of Nausicaä from Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Fans have also cast him as Ashitaka from Princess Mononoke, for the Mericcup and Hiccstrid pairings.

Jack Frost
For Hijack he's cast as Kiki, a young witch that enjoys flying. He also plays Haku, a spirit that helps a trapped girl in the world of spirits, Prince Ashitaka as he helps and falls in love with the wolf princess and as the charming wizard with the moving castle, Howl Jenkins Pendragon from Howl's Moving Castle.

Merida DunBroch
Merida is cast as San, also known as the wolf princess, Mononoke. Fans sometimes switch San's wolf theme with a bear theme so the role can better suit Merida, and so her mother and brothers can play the animal members of San's adoptive family in their bear forms. Merida can also play the part of the artist, Ursula from Kiki's Delivery Service, Sophie Hatter from Howl's Moving Castle and as Chihiro/Sen from Spirited Away. While her red hair and being the strong princess of her people, also portrays Merida as Nausicaä from Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

Rapunzel Corona
Rapunzel plays the seen borrower, Arrietty Clock, young timid Chihiro and as a female version of the river spirit Haku. As well as Kiki or the Senior Witch she runs into, but nicer with healing as her skill, and as the age spell victim, Sophie Hatter.

Toothless
The black dragon plays Kiki's black cat, Jiji with a shorter tail; as fans commonly featured Toothless as a black cat for modern crossovers. Which could also have cat Toothless as one of the cats that reside in the Cat Kingdom from The Cat Returns. Toothless can also be cast as Hiccup's dragon form, when he is Haku, in the same way that he serves as Hiccup's "beast self" in Beauty and the Beast AU. Toothless has also be portrayed as the forest spirit, Totoro when Hiccup is a male version of one of the Kusakabe sisters. While being a dragon could have Toothless as one of the dragons that exist in the Tales from Earthsea.

Queen Elsa
For the Jelsa pairing, she's cast as Sophie from Howl's Moving Castle. Fans have also cast her as the wolf princess San from Princess Mononoke and as Anna Sasaki from When Marnie was There. While being an older sister, casts her as Satsuki Kusakabe from My Neighbor Totoro.

Princess Anna
Anna is cast between Mei Kusakabe from My Neighbor Totoro, Sophie from Howl's Moving Castle and as Marnie from When Marnie was There, when Elsa is place as either Satsuki Kusakabe, a female Howl or as Anna Sasaki.

Hiro Hamada
For the strong bond he has with Baymax, Hiro plays a male version of Mei Kusakabe from My Neighbor Totoro, commonly beside Tadashi for when he is cast as a male Satsuki Kusakabe while Baymax is placed as the spirit Totoro. Fans have also cast Hiro as male versions of Chihiro from Spirited Away, Sophie from Howl's Moving Castle and Kiki from Kiki's Delivery Service. While his robotics skills, enjoys being in the air and his young age, could have him as Tombo Kopoli from Kiki's Delivery Service or as Pazu from Laputa: Castle in the Sky.

Tadashi Hamada
For the bond he has with his brother and robot, he's cast as a male Satsuki Kusakabe from My Neighbor Totoro. He has also been cast as the wizard Howl from Howl's Moving Castle.

Baymax
The white, huggable robot is cast as the huggable forest spirit Totoro, that takes a shine to the Hamada brothers (when they are male versions of the Kusakabe sisters) as they moved next to his forest and learn it's sectors, from My Neighbor Totoro. Baymax is also seen as No-Face from Spirited Away, while his white body and black eyes could have a miniature version of Baymax as a Kodama, a tree spirit from Princess Mononoke.

Mother Gothel
Due to Gothel using magic to keep herself young, fans have cast her as the Witch of the Waste from Howl's Moving Castle. She can also be portrayed as Yubaba (as well as her twin sister Zeniba) from Spirited Away, when Rapunzel is place as Chihiro or a female Haku.

Miguel Rivera
Miguel's time with spirits, in both his and their world, could have him as a male version of Chihiro from Spirited Away or one of the Kusakabe sisters from My Neighbor Totoro.

Nicholas St. North
Fans have North as the six armed boiler man, Kamaji from Spirited Away. Which would have his elves as the Sootballs. For when Jack is cast as a male Kiki from Kiki’s Delivery Service, a female and younger version of North is cast as bakery owner Osono. With a human version of one of his Yetis as his/her husband.

Wreck-It Ralph
Fanart of the Bus Scene from My Neighbor Totoro, has fans portraying Ralph as a human-like version of Totoro.

Vanellope von Schweetz
Fanart of the Bus Scene from My Neighbor Totoro, has fans portraying Vanellope as one of the Kusakabe sisters. Fans also have her as the young witch Kiki from Kiki’s Delivery Service.

Mochi
Mochi has been cast as the Catbus or a cat version of one of the smaller Totoros from My Neighbor Totoro, for when Hiro and Tadashi are male versions of the Kusakabe sisters/brothers and with Baymax as the large Totoro. While Hiro's role as a male Kiki from Kiki’s Delivery Service, has cast him as a non-black cat version of Jiji.

Coraline Jones
Stumbling into another world, meeting a "witch" that wants to trap her there, and her parents having no memory of what happened to them when she saved them, can easily portray Coraline as Chihiro Ogino from Spirited Away. While moving to a house that turns her world upside down after discovering the "magic" that is close by, could have her as one of the Kusakabe sisters from My Neighbor Totoro or as Anna Sasaki from When Marnie was There. Being friends with a back, talking cat could even have her as the young witch Kiki from Kiki's Delivery Service.

Videos

 * HTTYD: Princess Mononoke trailer by Pooka Dragon