Japan will have a strong presence at this year’s Venice International Film Festival. The latest works from Kitano Takeshi (61), Miyazaki Hayao (67) and Oshii Mamoru (56) have all been chosen to compete for the top prize. Miyazaki’s “Gake no Ue no Ponyo” (Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea), and Oshii’s “Sukai Kurora” (The Sky Crawlers) are the only animated features among the 21 entries. It’ll be the first visit to Venice for both anime directors in four years. Miyazaki’s “Hauru no Ugoku Shiro” (Howl’s Moving Castle) had its world premiere at Venice in 2004, winning the Golden Osella Award for Technical Achievement, while Oshii’s “Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence” was entered in the main competition. Meanwhile Kitano will be hoping that his latest, “Akiresu to Kame” (Achilles and the Tortoise), can achieve the success of 1997 Golden Lion winner “Hana-bi.” All three directors are planning to attend the festival which runs from August 27 to September 6. Oshii will be accompanied by the main voice actors in his film, Kase Ryo (33) and last year’s Oscar nominee Kikuchi Rinko (27). Actor Odagiri Jo will also be on screen, appearing in Lik-wai Yu’s multinational film “Plastic City.”
• Hollywood stars Edward Norton (38) and Liv Tyler (31) were in Tokyo last night for the Japan premiere of “The Incredible Hulk.” Norton, who lived in Japan for several months in the mid-1990s, greeted the audience with, “Osaka no tomodachi, ookini,” which translates as “Hi to my friends in Osaka.” Directed by Louis Leterrier, the movie opens here on August 1.