“Spirited Away” / 「千と千尋の神隠し」, Set of Three Original Japanese Movie Posters 2001 — Advance, Main Theatrical & Record-Breaking Alternate Styles — B2 Size (51 × 73 cm Each)
This listing is for an exceptional matching set of three original Japanese B2 theatrical posters produced for the first-release campaign of Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away / 「千と千尋の神隠し」 in 2001.
The set brings together three principal B2 designs issued sequentially during the film’s original Japanese theatrical campaign:
Style A — Advance / teaser poster: Chihiro in the family car — Reference B181A
Style B — Main theatrical poster: Chihiro, the pigs, and the spirit town — Reference K89A
Style C — Later alternate / record-breaking poster: Chihiro underwater — Reference J78A
Together, the three posters chart the development of the campaign from its mysterious advance promotion, through the principal theatrical release, to the later celebration of the film’s unprecedented commercial success.
All three are original 2001 Japanese theatrical printings, not later Studio Ghibli shop posters, decorative reproductions, or commercial reprints.
Film background
Spirited Away follows 10-year-old Chihiro Ogino, who is travelling with her parents to their new home when the family enters what appears to be an abandoned town.
After her parents consume food intended for the spirits and are transformed into pigs, Chihiro discovers that she has entered a supernatural realm governed by the powerful witch Yubaba. To survive, she accepts work at Yubaba’s bathhouse and is renamed Sen.
With the help of Haku, Kamaji, Lin, and other inhabitants of the spirit world, Chihiro must preserve her identity, save her parents, and find her way back to the human world.
Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, produced by Toshio Suzuki, and animated by Studio Ghibli, the film features music by Joe Hisaishi and was distributed theatrically in Japan by Toho.
Released in Japan on 20 July 2001, Spirited Away became an extraordinary cultural and commercial phenomenon. It broke Japanese attendance and box-office records, won the Golden Bear at the 2002 Berlin International Film Festival, and received the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2003.
The sequential Japanese poster campaign
These three designs represent distinct stages in the film’s original Japanese promotion.
The Style A advance poster introduced audiences to Chihiro before revealing the supernatural world. The Style B main theatrical poster presented the bathhouse setting, the transformed pigs, and the central danger of the story. After the film developed into a record-breaking national phenomenon, the Style C alternate poster was issued with text prominently announcing its continuing Japanese attendance and box-office records.
Displayed together, the set presents a visual history of one of the most important theatrical campaigns in Japanese animation.
Style A — Advance / teaser poster: Chihiro in the car — B181A
The first design was issued as an advance teaser poster, building anticipation before the film’s theatrical opening.
It depicts Chihiro lying across the rear seat of her family’s car, surrounded by moving boxes, bags, a thermos, and the bouquet of sweet peas given to her before the move. Her expression is tired, detached, and quietly apprehensive.
The image comes from the ordinary human world at the beginning of the story, before Chihiro discovers the tunnel and crosses into the spirit realm. Rather than revealing the film’s fantasy characters, the poster presents a familiar childhood experience: leaving behind a known home and being carried towards an uncertain future.
The title appears across the upper section:
「千と千尋の神隠し」
The yellow vertical text reads:
「トンネルのむこうは、不思議の町でした。」
“Beyond the tunnel, there was a mysterious town.”
Its restrained imagery and absence of the bathhouse characters make this the most enigmatic of the three designs and an exceptionally effective advance teaser.
Reference: B181A.
Style B — Main theatrical poster: the spirit town and pigs — K89A
The second design is the principal theatrical poster associated with the film’s original Japanese release.
Chihiro stands in the foreground wearing her red bathhouse uniform, looking back towards the viewer. Behind the railing is one of the enormous pigs representing her transformed parents.
The background reveals the film’s extraordinary spirit town at night. Lanterns, shopfronts, balconies, signs, and shadowy figures create a densely layered supernatural environment. A dark spirit moves through an open doorway at upper left, while No-Face appears as a faint and ominous presence within the town.
The yellow vertical tagline reads:
「トンネルのむこうは、不思議の町でした。」
“Beyond the tunnel, there was a mysterious town.”
The principal Japanese title:
「千と千尋の神隠し」
is presented in large white lettering with violet shadowing across the lower portion.
Above it appears:
「宮崎 駿 監督作品」
“A film directed by Hayao Miyazaki.”
This design introduces the film’s essential narrative elements: Chihiro’s bathhouse identity, the transformation of her parents, and the mysterious world in which she must learn to survive.
Reference: K89A.
Style C — Later alternate / record-breaking poster: underwater Chihiro — J78A
The third design was issued later in the theatrical campaign, after Spirited Away had developed into an unprecedented box-office phenomenon.
The upper section is dominated by an extraordinary close-up of Chihiro’s face seen through water, with bubbles rising across her features and soft aquatic light moving over her skin. Strands of grass or water plants pass across the foreground, giving the image a quiet, suspended quality.
The lower portion opens into an immense blue sky and reflective expanse of water. A tiny Chihiro stands alone at the horizon, reinforcing the scale, solitude, and mystery of her supernatural journey.
The vertical white text at upper right reads:
「あらゆる世代に語りかける生と死の不思議。」
“A mystery of life and death that speaks to every generation.”
The smaller central text repeats the campaign’s defining line:
「トンネルのむこうは、不思議の町でした。」
“Beyond the tunnel, there was a mysterious town.”
Most significantly, the blue vertical banner at lower left announces:
「観客動員数・興行収入、日本記録更新中！」
“Japanese records for audience attendance and box-office revenue are now being broken!”
This text places the poster firmly within the later stage of the original campaign, when the film’s extraordinary commercial achievement had itself become part of the advertising.
The title:
「千と千尋の神隠し」
appears in powerful red calligraphy across the centre, accompanied by the Studio Ghibli and theatrical production credits.
Reference: J78A.
Authenticity
Important authenticity note: numerous official modern reproductions and Studio Ghibli retail posters exist for Spirited Away and are frequently confused with original theatrical material.
The three examples offered here are genuine original Japanese B2 posters printed and distributed for the film’s 2001 first-release theatrical campaign.
They are not later Ghibli shop editions, reproductions, or decorative reprints.
Release and format note
Each poster is an original Japanese B2-size theatrical poster, measuring approximately:
51.5 × 72.8 cm / 20 × 28.7 inches
They were produced for sequential stages of the film’s original Japanese theatrical promotion:
Style A — Advance teaser campaign — B181A
Style B — Principal theatrical campaign — K89A
Style C — Later record-breaking campaign — J78A
Finding all three original B2 styles together, and in consistently excellent condition, represents a wonderful opportunity for collectors of Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki, Japanese animation, and original theatrical poster art.
Condition
All three posters are in excellent condition.
They retain vivid colour, crisp character artwork, clear typography, and exceptional overall display impact.
There are only light signs of age and handling consistent with original Japanese theatrical posters from 2001. All three present extremely well and form a visually coherent set when displayed together.
Please review the photographs carefully, as they show the exact three posters included in this listing.
This listing includes:
One original 2001 Japanese B2 Style A advance teaser poster — B181A
One original 2001 Japanese B2 Style B main theatrical poster — K89A
One original 2001 Japanese B2 Style C record-breaking alternate poster — J78A
They are now over 20 years old.
They are not reproductions or reprints.
Certificates of Authenticity included.
