Quentin Tarantino, Natalie Portman and Jessica Alba have all arrived in Venice ahead of the annual film festival.

Portman's ballet thriller Black Swan officially launches the event on Wednesday, meanwhile Alba is there to promote her new film Machete.

The action movie is co-written, produced and directed by Robert Rodriguez. "We're so proud of Machete and this is the best place to premiere it," he said.

Tarantino is there as head of the festival jury, to judge the films being shown in competition. The Pulp Fiction director said: "There's a lot of really exciting movies, exciting directors. It's a fantastic line-up. I'm keen with anticipation."

"I've been on a few juries and I love it. It's a joy to me, but it's work. We're not here for vacation," he added.