Japanese exhibition giant, Toho, held its first digital screening of Hayao Miyazaki's blockbuster, Spirited Away on July 20 at the Umeda Sukara-za Cinema in Osaka. The company used an IMAX DIGIMAX projector for the event, which delivered a three-day opening gross of $228,629 (Y28m), the highest take of all 336 screens showing the animated feature.

Toho is also set to start digital film screenings at its Umeda Kitano Theatre in September, beginning with Final Fantasy and followed by Jurassic Park III.

Currently, there are six screens equipped with digital projectors in Japan, of which Toho operates two. Toei, Toho's rival film exhibitor, has also opened two multiplex cinemas with digitised film projection systems and is set to open four more by 2004.