Art of Heidi, Girl of the Alps
/Heidi, Girl of the Alps is an animation series produced by Nippon Animation and directed by Isao Takahata in 1974. The anime was based on the Swiss novel Heidi's Years of Wandering and Learning by Johanna Spyri. In 1967, future Zuiyo founder Shigeto Takahashi, manager of TCJ at the time, produced a 5-minute pilot short for a series based on Johanna Spyri's novel, but the project was shelved until the new studio was founded. The series finally went into production in 1973, when a new pilot with character design by Yasuji Mori was produced as a test. This work however was never shown publicly and what remains of it are only a few cels and concept arts.
For an accurate depiction of the settings, Takahashi asked his staff to make a scouting trip to Switzerland, so that they could carefully study the locations for the series. In the summer of 1973, Isao Takahata, Hayao Miyazaki, and new character designer (and animation director) Yōichi Kotabe made a two-day visit to Maienfeld and later they also traveled to Frankfurt in Germany. The results of their research were used as a reference in the design of the settings and backgrounds, and in the character’s designs. The group stayed at the Heidialp hut which served as an inspiration for the grandfather's cottage. Before his trip to Switzerland, Kotabe had drawn Heidi with two pigtails based on Mori's previous design, but he removed them after a Swiss librarian told him that a 5-year-old girl who lives in the mountains wouldn't be able to tie one. For the grandfather's design, Kotabe took inspiration from a wooden carved figure in a local souvenir shop, which he quickly sketched without being noticed by the shopkeeper. Many new episodic adventures were added to the narration to pad the story, especially in the first part of the series. One of the most notable changes is in the character of Peter, made considerably less hostile when in the original novel he even breaks Clara's wheelchair out of jealousy.
The pictures on this page are a collection of artworks created for this series.
THE STORY
Heidi is five years old when her aunt Dete, who has raised Heidi since her parents' deaths four years earlier, takes Heidi to live with her formidable grandfather in the Swiss Alps. Dete has found a promising job in Frankfurt, but cannot leave while still Heidi's guardian, nor can she take Heidi with her. The only relative left is Heidi's grandfather, and in Dete's opinion, he should take some responsibility. Alm-Onji, as Heidi's grandfather is commonly known, has a fearsome reputation with the villagers of Dörfli, as rumors claim that in his youth he killed a man. Now he lives a solitary life with his dog Josef in a cabin halfway up the mountain. However, Heidi quickly wins her way into his heart with her enthusiasm and intelligence, firmly establishing herself in his life. She spends her days on the mountaintop with the goatherd Peter, whose responsibility it is to take the villagers' goats to the high mountains for pasture, and her winters occasionally visiting Peter's grandmother, a blind old woman whose dream is to one day hear her cherished book of psalms read to her (which Peter cannot do since he failed to learn to read). Alm-Onji's misanthropy and seclusion prevent Heidi from going to school, of which she has no experience anyway, ultimately leaving her illiterate.
Heidi continues to live happily in the mountains until Aunt Dete returns from the city, excited about a good opportunity for Heidi. A wealthy German businessman, Mr. Sesemann, is searching for a companion for his wheelchair-using daughter Clara. Thwarted by Alm-Onji, Dete tricks Heidi into accompanying her, ostensibly to get a present for Peter and her grandfather. Promised that she can return at any time, Heidi is taken to Frankfurt…
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