James Cagney, computer games and new Brazilian cinema: Glasgow Film Festival announces innovative new programming for 2013.

With over 35,000 admissions to more than 350 events, Glasgow Film Festival 2012 was the fastest-growing and third-biggest film event in the country. The first details of coming attractions for 2013 confirm GFF's growing international reputation as a home of innovative programming and fresh ideas.

Funded by Glasgow City Marketing Bureau, Creative Scotland and EventScotland, Glasgow Film Festival's growing popularity is anchored in the programme's wide range of individual strands that target specific areas of interest, bringing together themed screenings, special guests and an outstanding range of city-wide tie-in events to reach a huge spectrum of audiences. The Festival today announced three exciting new strands.

New for 2013, GFF teams up with Robert Florence of BBC Scotland’s Burnistoun, for a strand looking at the big-screen appeal of video games, from the point of view of the gamers themselves. Following in the fancy footsteps of 2012's hugely successful Gene Kelly retrospective, the 2013 Festival celebrates the achievements of Hollywood's favourite tough guy, Oscar-winning great James Cagney. The national focus for 2013 is on new cinema from emerging global superpower Brazil.

NEW STRANDS FOR 2013
James Cagney: Top Of The World, Ma!
Long before Goodfellas, Scarface or The Godfather, James Cagney was Hollywood's ultimate tough guy. An electrifying performer, Cagney blazed across the screen in a series of landmark crime classics including The Public Enemy, The Roaring Twenties and White Heat. Equally adept at helter-skelter screwball comedy and wartime drama, he won a Best Actor Oscar for his beloved performance as George M. Cohan in the musical Yankee Doodle Dandy. A retrospective from throughout his career, James Cagney: Top Of The World, Ma! pays tribute to one of the greatest stars from Hollywood's Golden Age.

PROGRAMME INCLUDES: The Public Enemy (1931), Angels With Dirty Faces (1938), The Roaring Twenties (1939), White Heat (1949), Love Me Or Leave Me (1955).

Game Cats Go Miaow!
Curated by obsessive gamer Robert Florence of BBC Scotland’s Burnistoun and videoGaiden, our newest strand celebrates Scotland's passion for gaming.  As computer games grow ever more cinematic in their scope and sweep, could they begin to challenge the movie-going experience? Some famous faces and hardcore gamers stop by to investigate.

Robert says: ‘Nothing makes me go 'miaow' the way a video game makes me go 'miaow'. I look forward to bringing an incredible line-up of events and heroic guests to Glasgow. I want this to be a games festival for gamers, so we're focusing on the people who matter - all us cats who play games! Miaow!’

PROGRAMME INCLUDES:
Rab’s Video Game Empty A live-comedy/chat/gaming show with some very special guests and a lot of audience interaction…  

Aliens: The Live Review A panel of gaming experts review the brand new video game Aliens: Colonial Marines LIVE in front of an audience, before a screening of the movie Aliens.  
Cosplay Go Miaow! Costume gala screening of a special film, with a prize awarded to the best cosplayer by an equally special panel of judges.

Buena Onda: New Brazilian Cinema
City Of God, Elite Squad and Central Station have alerted audiences to the world-class cinema emerging from Brazil. As the country becomes a dominant economic force and prepares to host the Olympic Games and the World Cup, we present a showcase of contemporary Brazilian cinema celebrating exciting new voices and award-winning achievements.

PROGRAMME INCLUDES: Xingu, dir Cao Hamburger; Prime Time Soap (A novellas das 8), dir. Odilon Rocha; Neighbouring Sounds (O som ao redor), dir. Kleber Mendonca Filho; Southwest (Sudoeste), dir Eduardo Nunes .