How to paint Like Ghibli? Ghibli Color Palette

I did a massive research and found EXACTLY what gouache and watercolors are used by Hayao Miyazaki i Ghibli’s painters. Check. It. Now.

A part of what makes Ghibli Ghibli are the colors used in their animation. I found a lot of Ghibli color palletes on the internet, but they’re basically colors selected from a movie shot:

Source: Reddit

While these are great for anaylzing and recreating a specific image, I was looking for something that will let me not only recreate, but create images with that Ghibli vibe.

Here’s my approach:

1. As I was doing my research for Ghibli color pallete, I stumbled upon this article: Draw like a Studio Ghibli anime artist with exclusive watercolour set approved by Hayao Miyazaki. It turned out there’s an actual watercolor set persoanlly chosen by Miyazaki himself.
2. Then, I found Holbein’s original watercolor charts, and mapped them with the colors named in the article. What you can see below is the original 24 watercolor set picked and approved by Miyazaki with matching swatches. With this, it wil be easier for you to find the exact colors digitally (use the COLOR PICKER tool) or mix colors traditionally.
3. I also found out that Ghibli painter use Nicker’s poster paints, and did the same for them.

Holbein’s watercolors picked by Miyazaki

Here are exact names of watercolor pigments that match Ghibli style:

Kazuo Oga’s gouache paints: Poster Paints he uses for Ghibli backgrounds

Kazuo Oga is an art director and background artist for many Madhouse Studio and Studio Ghibli anime films. I have his artbook Oga Kazuo Animation Artworks. There’s a short intro where he explains how he works, and I discovered that:

1. He doesn’t seem to use watercolor for the specific illustration tutorial in the book, just gouache (which makes sense, because if you use gouaches diluted with water, they act as watercolors).
   He uses 24-25 gouache pigments in general, but he doesn’t always use all the pigments for all the illustrations.
2. The gouache paints are Nicker’s Poster Colour paints. It’s hard to tell for sure, but it’s probably this set because it has exactly 24 colors.

What are poster colors?

Then, if I’m right, the exact colors would be:

So watercolor or gouache?

Wait, does Ghibli even use watercolor in their artworks? I said earlier that Ghibli illustrators use gouache-like poster paints, not watercolor. So why the Miyazaki-approved set of watercolors?

My guesses are:

1️⃣ Miyazaki uses watercolor for his concept sketches.

Miyazaki’s concept art. Source

2️⃣ Ghibli painters use gouache for painting backgrounds. Watercolor is less forgiving and more variable in finish, making it less practical for studio production where consistency matters. The poster paint Oga uses is cheap and available, and can give both the effect of watercolor and gouache. It might not have the best endurance – maybe it will fade out faster – but in animation, it doesn’t matter. You need a background that’s used as part of a movie, so it doesn’t has to hold for very long.

A Kazuo Oga background for Only Yesterday. Source: Animation Obsessive

How much does it cost to paint like Ghibli?

So, how to get the Miyazaki’s watercolor set? There are 3 options:

1. The price of the set (watercolors, notebook, pencil, etc.) is 9,460 yen (tax included), which is approximately $66.38. Unfortunately, the set is available exclusively at the Ghibli Museum in Japan, and there is no option for online ordering.
2. You can pick the tubes separately. I checked the prizes for where I live (Poland), and it turns out the total cost of 24 5ml tubes is around 375 zlotys ($99), with the price of a single tube being less than $4. I checked the prizes on Amazon US and I was shocked – about $10 for one tube. 😵‍💫 I hope that wherever you live, the Holbeins are rather affordable.
3. Finding similar pigments from other producers. The price might vary depending on whether you choose pricey options (Daniel Smith, Schmincke, Holbein) or more affordable ones (Winsor & Newton Cotman, Royal Talens).

How to get the Kazuos’ poster paints set?

1. I found the set on Amazon, and it costs $76.60.
2. As in point 3 above, but for gouaches.

Did You Like it?

Actually, I’d love to make this article a part of a bigger ebook with a super-comprehensive analysis of studio Ghibli style.

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2. Email me: mlecznymleczart@gmail.com.
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mleczny_mlecz

Self-taught digital painter who likes to write about art & drawing. Mostly painting urban scenes during golden & blue hour.