Glasgow Film Festival 2019 Announces Full Program
Glasgow Film Festival 2019 has been announced. From 20 February to 3 March, the city’s 15th annual
celebration of cinema will host 337 individual screenings, talks and events - showcasing 7 world premieres, 102 UK premieresand 49 Scottish premieres from 54 countries.
Sir Michael Palin will attend the UK premiere of Final Ascent and also discuss his varied and fascinating career in a special live Empire podcast.
World Premieres
Scotland and look set to follow in the success of last year’s world premiere closing gala, the smash-hit BAFTA-winning Scottish
documentary Nae Pasaran. World premieres from home-grown talents include: BAFTA-winning director Matt Pinder’s new
feature documentary Harry Birrell: Films of Love and War, which plunders the treasure trove archives of Scottish amateur
filmmaker Harry Birrell to present one man’s view of the 20th century; debut feature director Marilyn Edmond’s Connect, an
ambitious attempt to confront the issue of suicide amongst young men in Scotland, featuring a deeply affecting performance by
Kevin Guthrie; Do No Harm is director Stephen Bennett’s compelling exploration of the legacy of Scottish-born psychiatrist Dr
Ewen Cameron and the experiments that contributed to systems of modern-day torture across the globe; Mackintosh Redux is
the painstakingly remastered new version of Murray Grigor’s 1969 film made to complement the Mackintosh Centenary Exhibition,
with a brand new score by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra; and, Alberta Whittle, the recipient of the 2018/19 Margaret
Tait Award will present the first ever screening of her newly-commissioned film between a whisper and a cry. Returning crowd
favourite FrightFest will also offer up two spine-tingling world premieres, with Automata, a bold and original work from Scottish
auteur Lawrie Brewster and ‘Downton Abbey meets The Evil Dead’ in Jack McHenry’s pitch-perfect Here Comes Hell!
Karen Gillan delivers another star turn in the international premiere of wrenching US drama All Creatures Here Below
International and European Premieres
Festival favourite Karen Gillan delivers another star turn in the international premiere of wrenching US drama All Creatures
Here Below; director Andrew Peat returns to Scotland for the European premiere of Scotch - The Golden Dram, a handsomely
crafted documentary charting the story of the Scottish whisky industry through its most famous distillers and ardent enthusiasts;
The Science of Ghosts (from director Niall McCann whose Lost in France documentary had its premiere at GFF17) is an
imaginative and humorous riff on the musical biopic featuring Irish singer-songwriter Adrian Crowley, whilst theatre director
Simon Sharkey will introduce Run Free, the story of his working in a ghetto in Kingston, Jamaica, teaching young boys parkour
and physical theatre over a period of four years for the National Theatre of Scotland, Manifesto Jamaica and the British Council.
Gerard Butler and Peter Mullan star in The Vanishing which recieves its UK premiere at The Festival
Scottish Premieres
49 must-see films make their Scottish debut at this year’s Festival. Scottish premieres include: US stand-up comedian Bo Burnham’s eagerly awaited directorial debut, Eighth Grade; fellow comic Simon Amstell’s feature directorial debut, the fresh and endearing rom-com Benjamin; Only You, charting a beautiful romance that begins on Hogmanay on the streets of Glasgow,featuring rising stars Josh O’Connor and Laia Costa; Papi Chulo, the new feature from John Butler (director of GFF17 opening film Handsome Devil) that sees a heartbroken weatherman (played by Magic Mike star Matt Bomer) strike up a friendship with an elderly Mexican labourer;The Merger , starring top Australian stand-up Damian Callinan as a former professional Aussie Rules footballer returning home to help his hapless local team; Prophecy, an unprecedented insight into the mind of acclaimed Scottish artist Peter Howson as he works on his latest masterpiece; and the astonishing immersive documentary about the raw power of water, Aquarela (supported by Creative Scotland), screened on Dolby Atmos at Cineworld for full, jaw-dropping effect.
Scottish premieres include: US stand-up comedian Bo Burnham’s eagerly awaited directorial debut, Eighth Grade
Stars attending the festival
We’re delighted to welcome a host of famous faces and rising talent to GFF19. Sir Michael Palin will attend the UK premiere of Final Ascent and also discuss his varied and fascinating career in a special live Empire podcast, while Sonic Youth’s Steve Shelley and The Pastel’s Stephen McRobbie with join Daydream Nation director Lance Bangs for a post-screening Q&A and Magic Mike, American Horror Story and White Collar star Matt Bomer treds the red carpet at the Scottish premiere of Papi Chulo. Other guests include: one of the world’s greatest dancers Carlos Acosta alongside his Yuli director Icíar Bollaín
and writer Paul Laverty; stand-up comics-turned directors Bo Burnham
and Simon Amstell; actor and disability campaigner Adam Pearson; Irish
musician Adrian Crowley; director Carol Morley; actors including Swedish
horror icon Christina Lindberg, award-winning Belgian director and
actor Bouli Lanners who stars in two Festival titles (Real Love, The Third Marriage), the star of Netflix’s latest hit Sex Education Connor Swindells;
and rising star of Dirty God, Vicky Knight. As previously announced,
actor-director Alice Lowe will participate in a horror film panel as
part of the festival’s Industry Programme, with more Industry programme
guests to be announced in the coming weeks..
Matt Bomer treds the red carpet at the Scottish premiere of Papi Chulo
Allan Hunter, Glasgow Film Festival Co-director, said: “It is a real pleasure to be able to share the programme for Glasgow Film
Festival 2019. The festival is peppered with exciting discoveries from around the world that range from action-packed Indiancrowd-pleaser The Man Who Feels No Pain to elegant Vietnamese period piece The Third Wife, knockout coming of age tale
Float Like a Butterfly from Ireland and the gorgeous Kyrgyzstan musical The Song of the Tree. I can’t wait for audiences to delight
in Louis Garrel’s romantic A Faithful Man, embrace Patrick Wang’s Altman-esque epic A Bread Factory and shudder at The
Vanishing with Peter Mullan and Gerard Butler. The cherry on the cake is our tribute to the great Elaine May that is guaranteed
to bring a smile to your face.”
Tickets for Glasgow Film Festival 2019 are on sale now from Glasgow Film Theatre Box office or at glasgowfilm.org