Studio Ghibli’s Princess Mononoke is set during Japan’s Muromachi period and centers on conflict between ironworkers and forest spirits.
Hayao Miyazaki wrote and directed the 1997 film. Its historical backdrop draws on the Muromachi era, a period associated with social change, regional power struggles, and the growth of iron production.
The story follows Ashitaka, who becomes involved in a struggle between Lady Eboshi’s settlement, known as Irontown, and supernatural beings defending the forest. The film avoids presenting either side as completely good or evil.
Princess Mononoke is sometimes described simply as an environmental film, but its story also examines technology, disability, warfare, labor, and competing ideas of community. Its title character, San, was raised by the wolf goddess Moro.