Everybody to Kenmure Street, the new documentary from Felipe Bustos Sierra that was executive produced by two-time Oscar winner Emma Thompson, will open the 22nd edition of the Glasgow Film Festival (GFF) on Feb. 25. It tells the story of “one of Scotland’s most spontaneous and successful acts of civil resistance in recent memory.”
The film will world premiere at Sundance before getting its U.K. premiere at Glasgow. “In May 2021, a U.K. Home Office dawn raid in the Glasgow district of Pollokshields, one of Scotland’s most diverse neighborhoods, prompted local residents to rush to the streets to stop the deportation of their neighbors,” explains a synopsis. “As word spread in the early morning of what was Eid celebrations for many locals, a handful of protestors swelled to hundreds of people, flooding Kenmure Street and making it impassable to the immigration enforcement van. The eight-hour stand-off made international headlines as the community organized itself in an extraordinary act of peaceful solidarity.”
The film uses crowd-sourced footage from the day along with archive film and “set-designed scenes captured by cinematographer Kirstin McMahon, featuring actors relaying verbatim the testimonies of contributors who wished to remain anonymous.”
Bustos Sierra’s debut documentary Nae Pasaran, which told the story of how the boycott of East Kilbride Rolls Royce factory workers helped end General Augusto Pinochet’s regime in 1970s Chile, had its world premiere as the closing gala of Glasgow 2018. It was honored as the best film at the BAFTA Scotland Awards.
Everybody to Kenmure Street was produced by Ciara Barry of Glasgow-based production company barry crerar, in association with Bustos Sierra through Debasers Films. The film was supported by the National Lottery through Screen Scotland. Mark Thomas of Screen Scotland served as executive producer alongside Thompson. The film features an original score by Barry Burns of Mogwai.
Everybody to Kenmure Street will hit U.K. and Irish cinemas on March 13, released by Conic.
Said Bustos Sierra: “This film is a snapshot of a day, of a neighborhood, and of gestures repeated through time, for the right to have a voice and to live in peace. Glasgow’s long history of civil disobedience and meaningful change has been a barometer throughout the making of this film.”
He concluded: “I cannot wait to watch it at the GFT with its hometown audience, for whom we can only hope it’ll be a joyful reminder of what a beacon they can be in uncertain times.”
Paul Gallagher, head of program for the Glasgow Film Festival, said: “I’m delighted that Felipe Bustos Sierra will be returning to GFF to open our festival with this hugely inspiring film. Everybody to Kenmure Street tells a story that is pertinent for the whole world right now, focusing on a very specific moment in Glasgow’s recent past to offer a deeply moving vision of community action and resistance to injustice. With this film Felipe has captured an essential aspect of Glasgow’s people-loving heart; I can’t wait to share his vision with the world.”
GFF will close with the U.K. premiere of James McAvoy’s directorial debut California Schemin’ on March 8, making it the second year in a row that the Scotland festival has opened and closed with Scottish features.
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