Every summer when my youngster and I head overseas for some quality father-daughter time, one of the most important items we take is an iPhone loaded with movies to keep us amused on the road and when we return to the hotel after a long day in the sun.
One film that never fails to make our playlist is My Neighbour Totoro - the 1988 animated movie by the famed Japanese anime powerhouse Studio Ghibli - and setting aside one night each holiday to indulge in this wonderfully whimsical tale of two young sisters' adventures with friendly forest spirits has turned into a family tradition.
The titular Totoro is the cute, cuddly but slightly freaky guardian of the forest, and has become the face of Studio Ghibli - the 'Mickey Mouse' of this Japanese version of the Disney empire - appearing in its company logo as well as becoming its representative around the world, even making a cameo in the recent Toy Story 3.
In these days of effects-heavy, dumbed-down children's films involving hamster secret agents and exploding meatball machines, Studio Ghibli's output harks back to a more innocent era of animation, with lush, hand-drawn frames and an almost Zen-like atmosphere of restrained integrity.
The studio was founded in 1985 by the famed anime directors Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, and since releasing its first film, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, in 1986, Ghibli has gone on to win the Animage Anime Grand Prix award several times as well as an Oscar for best animated feature in 2002 for Spirited Away.
Just as many Disney films occupy a special place in the hearts of youngsters - and the young at heart - throughout the world, the Japanese studio's films have been an important part of the childhoods of many Asian people, and the legions of local Ghibli fanatics have some Totoro-size treats to look forward to this month.
