Festival is ready to reel in film fans to Glasgow
THE UK’S second biggest film festival will get under way this week in Glasgow.
Around 40,000 visitors will enjoy a packed programme of cinema from past and present as well as live music and school disco showdowns at venues all over the city.
Allison Gardner, co-ordinator of Glasgow Film Festival, promised a programme of events to, “inspire, educate and entertain” audiences.
The festival will get under way on Wednesday with cult movie director Wes Anderson’s latest release Isle of Dogs and will close with Nae Pasaran, which tells the story of a group of workers at the Rolls-Royce factory in East Kilbride.
In 1974, staff showed their support for the people of Chili by refusing to carry out vital repairs of engines for Hawker Hunter planes, which had been used during the brutal military coup in September 1973
Ms Gardner added: “When the festival started in 2005, we were bringing in around 4,000 people – now its 10 times that amount.
“The main thing is making sure it is accessible to everyone, whether that’s in the price of the tickets or the venue.
“In other festivals likes Cannes, you can’t just go if you’re a member of the public but we don’t want ours to be like that. We want everyone to able to come along and experience something which is why our prices are competitive and we have free screenings.
“We have a fabulous team, so its a team effort. We’re very lucky because the Glasgow Film Theatre (GFT) team is also the Glasgow Film Festival Team. Essentially the festival our big moment to show off what we’ve been doing all year.
“We want to say look how good Glasgow is and look how many great films are here from across the world. The GFT is a beacon of light in today’s darkness.”
Other top picks for the festival include The Cured, a low-budget zombie film set in Dublin and the Melanie Griffith classic Working Girl.
For the full programme go to www.glasgowfilm.org/ glasgow-film-festival