“The Secret World of Arrietty” is the newest Studio Ghibli animated film, and will screen tonight at UCLA and premiere nationwide on Friday. Frank Marshall, the executive producer behind the English version of the film and the producer of other works such as the “Bourne” movie series and “Indiana Jones” films, spoke with Daily Bruin’s Colin Reid about “The Secret World of Arrietty,” its dubbing process, how it differs from a live-action film and the appeal of animation in the film industry.

Daily Bruin: What was the reasoning behind choosing to screen “The Secret World of Arrietty” a day in advance at UCLA? Do you consider this to be the primary premiere for the movie?
Frank Marshall: Well I think it’s always good to have what we call “word-of-mouth screenings” in order to get people excited and talking about the movie before it comes out. That’s really the purpose of having this – not really (a) premiere screening – but more of a special screening in advance of the movie opening this weekend.

DB: Having also worked on another Studio Ghibli animated film, “Ponyo,” was there anything different about “The Secret World of Arrietty”?
FM: I think “The Secret World of Arrietty” is really the most accessible of the recent Studio Ghibli films. That’s mainly because it’s based on the book, “The Borrowers,” and a lot of people have read that book. So, the story is more universal.

DB: Did any unexpected challenges arise during the making of this film, such as translation or animation issues?
FM: What I love about these movies is that they’re so beautiful, but they’re a dying art – the art of hand-drawn animation that you don’t see very often anymore. One of the things that (Studio Ghibli) does differently than we do here is complete the animation first and then add the voices after. So that’s always a challenge for us, particularly since (the movie) was originally in Japanese. That’s a challenge for us to do the translation and to tell the story so it makes sense, but to (also) fit the words into the characters’ mouths. There were a couple places where that was a little more difficult than usual.

DB: Where do you stand on animation in the film industry? Do you think it’s merely for children or do you think it can reach and influence a larger audience?
FM: Oh no, I think that animation can work for both adults and children. If you look at movies like “Toy Story,” “Cars” or even “The Secret World of Arrietty,” I think that adults and children love these movies. In the case of this movie, it’s really a film for the whole family. There’s stuff there for the adults, and there’s stuff there for the kids. That’s what I love. I have two kids, and I love to go to the movies with them where I’m able to enjoy things on a different level.

DB: Do you prefer working with live action or animation when producing a film?
FM: Well, they’re completely different. The animation is a long process, taking two or three years to get everything in. It’s much slower than live action. For example, I’m just finishing up the fourth “Bourne,” and it was pretty exciting every day. But animation is a completely different thing, where you’re taking your time to tell the story. So I don’t prefer one over the other – it’s just that animation takes a lot longer.

DB: So many people are attracted to these Studio Ghibli films. Why do you think this is?
FM: They’re mesmerizing. I think they’re absolutely beautiful. The animation is beautiful and the characters are wonderful. They take time to tell the story and that’s different from today’s movies, where a lot of them are pretty chaotic. But the Studio Ghibli films all have a quiet tone and an undercurrent of environmentalism – they have a little bit of a message.

DB: Do you plan on working with Studio Ghibli in the future, and if so, are there any projects you can tell us about?
FM: Yes, we’re going to be doing their next film called “Up on Poppy Hill.” That’s the next one coming out of Studio Ghibli. Next year is the 25-year anniversary of “Totoro,” so we’ll be helping them out with that. Then I believe there’s also a new film on the horizon from Mr. (Hayao) Miyazaki himself, so we will be involved in all of those.