On October 25th Cannes Jury Prize winning film Red Road premiered in Glasgow, the city so pivotal to the film's storyline and appeal.
This was Academy Award winning writer and director Andrea Arnold's first venture into feature film, and there was a palpable sense of tension in the air as the cast and crew began to arrive at the Glasgow Film Theatre.
Despite the dreary weather, there was a buzz of anticipation in the air.
Andrea Arnold addressed the audience before the screening, thanking all involved and giving a special mention to the residents of Red Road for providing the location for her work, to considerable applause.
At the film's end, the lead actors Kate Dickie and Andy Curran stood before the audience and gave their own personal thanks to all who helped create the picture. Dickie said: "It was a great experience to film it in Glasgow." Given that almost all involved in the movie are Scottish, and many are from the Glasgow area, it was clear there was a lot of emotion involved in bringing this film 'home' to a screen in Glasgow.
The audience was audibly and visibly moved by what they had seen, and many were eager to speak to the cast and crew about their experiences in the city and how it felt to be back where they had started with a finished product to show for all their work.
I overheard many commenting on how much more 'real' this film felt to them because they could recognise the streets and buildings, and no attempt had been made to downplay the Glaswegian accent and its own particular brand of cursing – indeed this film revels in the grim side of the city and concerns itself with the downtrodden plight of some of the poorest residents.
This may have been lost on an audience elsewhere, but in Glasgow everyone involved in the film was a hero (or heroine) for the night.
I was sadly unable to attend the after party at The Arches nightclub, the event had run late and many of us had a long journey home.
I did, however, have time to stop by my favorite bar just around the corner, and while sitting there overheard two men who had also been at the premiere talking about the night. They were agreeing that it was quite an experience to share in the unveiling of a 'homemade' product like Red Road, and looked forward to future works by Arnold. I couldn't have put it better myself.
Read our reviews of Red Road.
