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HOWL’S MOVING CASTLE

SOUND DESIGN IN

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All I could find about the castle was that the sound designer (Toru Noguchi) typically uses sounds from a sound effects library called Cartoon Trax Volume 1. I listened to some of the sound effects and I’m almost positive he just got the castle sounds from this library :(

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France

  • Much of the original Japanese production team took inspiration for visual aesthetics from Colmar, a small town in France
  • Wanted “pure” sounds to fit the 19th century vibe
  • So, many sound effects were recorded in France as well:
    • Footsteps on cobblestone
    • Horse-drawn carriages on cobblestone streets
    • Ambient cafe and street background noise

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Re-dubbing Japanese to English

  • In America, voices are usually recorded before the film is animated, but Japan does the opposite
  • Editors take individual words and even just syllables from different clips so that dialogue matches up perfectly
  • Sophie’s voice switches between young and old (two different voice actors)

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Water bottle and a muffin →

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Water bottle and a muffin →

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More voice actor trivia hehe

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More voice actor trivia hehe

Christian Bale!

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Even MORE voice actor trivia (last one)

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Even MORE voice actor trivia (last one)

Billy Crystal aka Mike Wazowski!

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Music

  • Original score
  • The Merry Go Round of Life theme music escalates when Sophie is happy and/or with Howl, used to reflect her emotions and overcoming her curse

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THE END

Sources:

https://ghibli.fandom.com/wiki/Howl%27s_Moving_Castle#Behind_the_Scenes

https://inktoimage.wordpress.com/2015/04/22/howls-moving-castle-sound/

https://soundeffects.fandom.com/wiki/Toru_Noguchi

https://ghibli.fandom.com/wiki/Howl%27s_Moving_Castle/Music

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqiIZvIKGd0&t=104s