Studio Ghibli Wins Spain's Princess of Asturias Award
The jury treated Ghibli's body of work as a form of public communication, not simply as cinema, the same framing that previously honored journalists and philosophers.
Reporting from 3 sources: Anime News Network, Studio Ghibli, Cartoon Brew.
The Princess of Asturias Foundation named Studio Ghibli the 2026 recipient of its Communication and Humanities prize on Wednesday. The award, often described as Spain's equivalent of a Nobel, carries a Joan Miro sculpture, a diploma, and 50,000 euros. A jury statement said the Tokyo studio transformed creativity into knowledge and communication, citing its hand-drawn craft, environmental themes, and complex female protagonists as a cultural bridge across generations. The ceremony is set for October in Oviedo, with King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia presiding. Ghibli is the first anime studio and the first pure animation recipient in the category's history. The honor follows the studio's 2024 honorary Palme d'Or at Cannes. Past winners include Margaret Atwood, Martin Scorsese, and Meryl Streep. Cartoonists Marjane Satrapi and Quino won earlier editions. The foundation's announcement did not specify which films the jury discussed, though the citation mentioned values of empathy, respect, friendship, and love of nature.
The jury statement said the studio was honored "for having exceptionally transformed creativity into knowledge and communication," and praised its tradition of "complex, transformative female protagonists" as a virtue worth recognition.
Two cartoonists won the prize in earlier editions. Iranian-French cartoonist and Persepolis director Marjane Satrapi received it in 2024. Argentine cartoonist Quino, creator of Mafalda, was honored in 2014, and Mafalda is now getting an animated adaptation at Netflix. Neither Satrapi nor Quino represented a dedicated animation house, which makes Ghibli the first recipient from the anime industry and the first pure animation winner.
The award carries a Joan Miro sculpture, a diploma, and 50,000 euros. The ceremony is set for October in Oviedo, with King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia presiding. The honor arrives two years after the studio received an honorary Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2024. Studio Ghibli was founded in 1985 by Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 3 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.