Scottish zombie musical to open Glasgow Youth Film Festival

Ten years ago Glasgow Film proposed a novel concept: a youth-oriented film festival where young people were the programmers as well as the intended audience. The Glasgow Youth Film Festival (GYFF) was born, and for the past decade, it’s been handing programming duties over to groups of bright teens aged 15 to 19, giving them an opportunity to explore and curate a festival of the films that speak directly to the passions and concerns of them and their peers.

The programme for this landmark tenth edition, which also coincides with Scotland’s Year of Young People, is currently being devised by the GYFF Young Programmers, who are in the midst of GYFF Summer School, which sees them working closely with the team at Glasgow Film to learn the various festival programming ropes. “I’m enjoying hearing from people at the GFT and learning from them,” said Kasey Ditton, one of this year's GYFF programmers. “Watching new films and meeting new people has been fun!”

The GYFF Summer School consists of workshops on programming, marketing, short film, pop-up cinema programming and much more. This year the programme also extends to other young creatives getting involved, such as designer Fiona Hunter, who’s working on this year’s GYFF branding. “GYFF is all about collaboration and variety,” said Hunter of her work with GYFF. “We wanted to create an identity that reflected the many voices and elements that shape this festival.”

This year’s edition runs 14-16 September 2018, with the full programme announced 15 August. Today, however, the opening film has been revealed to be the all-singing, all-dancing, Scottish horror musical Anna and the Apocalypse, and it should prove a lively, showstopping gala.

Filmed just down the road in Port Glasgow, the zombie musical’s screening will also include a Q&A with some of the cast and crew, including Glaswegian director John McPhail, who’s clearly excited for this hometown screening. “I’m so pleased that the Glasgow Youth Film Festival team have chosen to programme Anna and the Apocalypse – it really means a lot to me,” said the director. “I’m a Glasgow boy, and remember sitting in GFT watching all these amazing films, inspired to make my own – I hope young aspiring filmmakers watch this and know it is possible to make any film, even horror zombie musicals if they want!”

GYFF, 14-16 Sep, GFT. Tickets for GYFF opening gala Anna and the Apocalypse goes on sale Wed 1 Aug at 12noon, available from GFT Box Office and glasgowfilm.org/gyff