Being a few inches tall has never before been such a tall order. In the Japanese animated film “The Secret World of Arrietty,” Arrietty and her family have to find a way to surmount the problems associated with their size, while still remaining hidden from the humans living above them.

Starting today with one of Studio Ghibli’s newest films, Melnitz Movies and the UCLA Terasaki Center for Japanese Studies will be presenting the monthly event, “New Visions of Japanese Cinema,” in celebration of both the Terasaki Center’s 20th anniversary and contemporary Japanese film. Each month leading up to June will feature one contemporary movie from Japan.

According to assistant director of the Terasaki Center Noel Shimizu, the Terasaki Center has supported film events in the past, but has not received much support from younger generations – its general audience consists of older Japanese Americans. The more modern films at this year’s event are aimed at attracting a broader audience.

“We’ve co-sponsored one film a year in the past, but to actually do a cohesive series is exciting for us, and we’re hoping that it’ll be an annual thing,” Shimizu said. “We really feel that film reaches the largest audience.”

Originally released by Studio Ghibli – the Japanese film company behind such animated films as “Spirited Away” and “Ponyo” – in 2010, “The Secret World of Arrietty” has since been dubbed to English by director Gary Rydstrom and executive producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall. The dubbed version will be featured at tonight’s event.

This reformatting of the movie serves as the reasoning behind the film’s primary position within the Japanese screening series. “The Secret World of Arrietty” is both relevant and has a certain likability that is relatable to Pixar films, said Seiji Lippit, the associate director at the Terasaki Center and associate professor of Asian languages and cultures.

While certainly comparable to a cartoon, the Japanese film is more refined and sophisticated, Lippit said.

“When people think of animated films, they usually think of children’s films, but animation in Japan has always been seen as something more than simply for children,” Lippit said. “Studio Ghibli films appeal to audiences of all ages and all backgrounds. That’s one of the hallmarks of Japanese popular culture; it all melds into one age group.”

When “New Visions of Japanese Cinema” was in its conceptual stages, director of Melnitz Movies Samuel Prime decided that “The Secret World of Arrietty” was a proper fit for the series, mostly because of the charm and intrigue he thought it would garner at UCLA.

“What most amazes me about the film is that it shows a perspective from a very pedestrian world that’s both fantastic and magical,” Prime said. “Even a spool of thread is an insurmountable obstacle for some of the characters, where from our perspective as human beings, a spool of thread is something that we could pass by and not even notice.”

It’s these aspects of the movie, and other Studio Ghibli films as well, that Prime said will make the event special.

“I think the Studio Ghibli model is telling really human stories within a magical landscape, and I think any story like that connects with a wide range of people,” Prime said.