By Nrl Liya
The movie “Whisper of the Heart” might seem like a straightforward narrative of a young girl in her middle school year experiencing the undoubted canon events for all teenagers. She shares the everyday struggle of a student during examination season, facing the ups and downs of friendship and love life, and her seeming literary talent that is yet to grow. Yet, even with these simple elements of an indie film, lessons on how to face the perilous journey of our mundane life could be taken note of.
The movie began with a classic song “Take Me Home, Country Road” but with a twist by our main character, Shizuku. With a mother studying for her Ph.D. certificate, a father working as a librarian, and an older sister who just began her young adult life, Shizuku's life does not stand out as a main character as one would usually expect. She is the youngest in her family and is preparing to enter high school, has a deep interest in reading all the fictional books in her school library, and a talent for literature. As an English and literature student, I felt a sense of familiarity in seeing a young teenager slowly discovering her love of books and poetic elements.
Shizuku is aware of her interest and seemingly premature talent in literature and poetry, as she even modified an English song “Take Me Home, Country Road” to fit with the Japanese lingual, and yet remains to wonder about her future. She wonders whether there is a gem hidden inside of her.
“I’ve become very afraid of finding out whether or not I have had a beautiful crystal like this inside me. But I want to write. When I’ve written a story, I’ll be sure to show it to you first.”
Facing a high school entrance examination, the young teenager cannot help but wonder if she has anything to offer in her life. Meeting another young man named Seiji who has a deep passion for making violins, Shizuku feels inspired and sets out to prove herself by writing a story.
My unconditional love for Studio Ghibli's work is rooted in my appreciation for the realism in their character. Just like Chihiro in "Spirited Away" who acts her age as a young child, Shizuku's talent in literature remains realistic. There wasn’t a grand call for destiny for her to shine in with her talent, but rather a choice. A decision she made in order to prove to herself of her worth. A challenge.
A challenge she herself set upon, to write and finish a fictional story in a matter of two months. Shizuku goes on for two months writing and writing her story, facing self-doubt about her talent. Constantly working on her novel day and night, skipping her study for examination and sleep, to create her own fictional story.
From this, I understand that even if one has a natural talent for art, it isn’t enough. Hard work, no matter how cliche it sounds, is the true essence of an artist and their artwork. Shizuku, who loves fictional books, decides to venture into non-fiction, reading historical and factual texts to perfect her art. That creation takes effort and sacrifice that non-artist wouldn’t understand.
Shizuku, who is given compliments multiple times by her friends, is still left with doubts about her ability and skills. Feeling uncertain of her story and its plots, experiencing writer's block, and doubting her works. It emphasises that talent and want aren’t enough.
“Now that I’ve written it I get it. Wanting isn't enough. I have to learn more…”
After two months of writing, Shizuku finally completes her work. Her work is put out to others, to be seen through eyes other than hers, Seijis’s grandfather.
Shizuku knows that her work isn’t perfect, is filled with doubts, and she understands that her knack for writing could only take her so far. Her artwork is described by Seiji’s grandfather as rough, blunt, and unfinished, though it might seem harsh but it's the truth. She is yet trained or experienced enough to be able to write a five-star story, but that’s the charm of this film.
Shizuku yearns to be the gem hidden in a stone and to achieve that, time, effort, and a strong heart is needed to polish off the crystal to a beautiful form.
As an English major studying literature, it is certain to wonder the future of our career and one of them is to become an artist. Reading countless literature works for classes and personal leisure, is a heavy burden set on the heart when viewing the creativity of an artist. Wondering and pondering on your own talent and skills that seem to be nonexistent.
It needs to be harnessed and might take more time and energy than one wishes to give. But for an artist, creating art isn’t a passion but it is just something that an artist does.
“There’s always a voice inside me that says, ‘Things won’t go that smoothly.'”
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