“Howl’s Moving Castle” didn’t quite manage to win the big prize at the Venice International Film Festival. The Golden Lion award went to Mike Leigh’s “Vera Drake” but insiders said that Miyazaki Hayao’s latest animated feature was in the running till the end, and his Studio Ghibli received the Osella Award for technical achievement. The final grand prix decision came down to two European and two Asian features (including Spain’s “The Sea Within” and Korea’s “Bin Jip”). The jury, led by British director John Boorman, commented that the decision had been very difficult. ”Howl’s Moving Castle” is based on a children’s book of the same name by British author Diana Wynne Jones. The movie, set in a world of science and witchcraft, describes the romance between a sorcerer named Howl and an 18-year-old girl, Sophie, who is turned into a 90-year-old crone under a spell on the eve of war. The film will be released here November 20.