foundling identity

His films consistently feature orphaned or displaced protagonists discovering their identity and place in the world, most notably in Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle.

Her deeply introspective films explore fractured identity and childhood trauma, examining how characters construct selfhood from fragmented memories and displacement.

His works like Nobody Knows and Like Father, Like Son directly examine foundling identity, family bonds beyond biology, and the search for belonging and parental connection.