The ninth annual Hollywood Film Festival, which opens Oct. 18 at Grauman's Chinese Theatre, unveiled Monday a lineup of 60 films, drawn from a record 2,200 worldwide submissions. The fest, which runs through Oct. 23 at the ArcLight Cinemas in Hollywood, will close with a screening of Hayao Miyazaki's "My Neighbor Totoro."

The screening of the Studio Ghibli favourite "My Neighbor Totoro" comes as further recognition of Miyazaki's rising esteem in the filmmaking world since receiving the Golden Lion award for lifetime achievement at the recent Venice Film Festival. Audiences in Australia are not short on opportunity to enjoy the films of Studio Ghibli.

First we are being treated to a mini festival of Studio Ghibli films with screenings on SBS TV every Wednesday at 10pm. The remaining films on the schedule are Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind on Oct 12, Kiki's Delivery Service on Oct 19, and closing with the Academy Award winning Spirited Away on Oct 26.

In cinemas now, the latest Miyazaki masterpiece, "Howl's Moving Castle", is wowing audiences, holding #1 on the limited release chart. Howl's is an experience that you won't want to miss on the big screen!

Finally, Madman continues its acclaimed DVD releases of the Studio Ghibli Collection, with "Pom Poko" and "My Neighbours the Yamadas" available on the 19th of October.

Of course we haven't forgotten about "My Neighbour Totoro", the most requested of the Studio Ghibli back catalogue, which will be released for the first time in Australia and with both English and Japanese dialogue, in Autumn 2006.