September 2026 at GFT

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Glasgow Youth Film Festival announces full line-up as GFT reveals September programme

Glasgow Film Theatre (GFT) has announced a packed September programme featuring the return of Glasgow Youth Film Festival, a major season celebrating legendary filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, the Rogue Hollywood strand of Cinema Rediscovered 2026, and a wide-ranging programme of new releases, previews, repertory screenings, special events and Q&As.

Tickets for GFT's September programme are on sale from 2:10pm on Wednesday 26 August from glasgowfilm.org and the GFT Box Office.

Glasgow Youth Film Festival 2026

Glasgow Youth Film Festival (GYFF) returns from 25-27 September, bringing three days of films, special events and Q&As co-curated by Glasgow Film’s 2026 cohort of Young Programmers, aged 15 to 18. Mentored through a summer school with the Glasgow Film team, the young programmers curate a programme of new releases and modern classics designed to inspire the next generation of cinema lovers and celebrate audiences of all ages.

This year's festival theme is Carpe Diem, exploring stories of seizing opportunities, embracing change and making the most of life. The festival opens on Friday 25 September with an Opening Gala screening of Georgia Oakley’s highly anticipated adaptation of Sense and Sensibility, which stars Daisy Edgar Jones and George MacKay. This screening will also feature a special live performance from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Highlights across the festival include haunting, coming-of-age drama — screening in Scotland for the first time — Falcon Lake on Friday 25 September, before Spike Lee's landmark Do The Right Thing and Sundance Festival gem Extra Geography with a Q&A featuring lead actresses Marni Duggan and Galaxie Clear on Saturday 26 September.

The festival also features a Queer Cinema Sundays screening of Breakfast on Pluto, starring Cillian Murphy, and a Saturday Take 2 family screening of Barbie.

Two very different — but equally charming — documentaries come in the form of British farming feud Derek vs Derek on Saturday 26 September, featuring a pre-recorded Q&A with director James Dawson, before, on Sunday 27 September, the Elliot Page-narrated exploration of gender and sexuality within the animal kingdom, Second Nature, featuring a pre-recorded Q&A with director Drew Denny.

The festival concludes on Sunday 27 September with a special 35mm presentation of Dead Poets Society featuring live music and poetry hosted by the SpeakEasy house band and featuring some of Scotland's most exciting spoken word artists.

The festival will also feature free industry talks in partnership with Into Film, including a session exploring the world of film projection and different film formats. Further details will be announced later in the month.

Duncan Harte, Glasgow Film’s Learning and Youth Engagement Manager, said: "This year's group of young programmers have put together an exceptional selection celebrating all kinds of love — romantic, platonic and familial, love for nature, love for community and love for artistic expression. Across the festival is the rallying cry of Carpe Diem and I hope audiences will seize the opportunity themselves to watch these great films at GFT."

Harry, one of this year’s Young Programmers, aged 17, said: "The GYFF summer school was the best part of my summer. It was great to be in a group of people who all love film. The process of programming the festival was really interesting and being able to meet so many people in the industry was fantastic."

Special seasons

GFT's acclaimed CineMasters strand turns its focus to one of cinema's most influential and visionary directors with CineMasters: Andrei Tarkovsky. Running throughout September, the retrospective presents all seven of the Russian filmmaker's feature films: Ivan's Childhood, Andrei Rublev, Solaris, Mirror, Stalker, and 4K restorations of Nostalghia and The Sacrifice. Spanning Tarkovsky's remarkable career, the season offers audiences a rare opportunity to experience these landmark works on the big screen.

As part of Cinema Rediscovered 2026, GFT presents Rogue Hollywood, a season examining the darker, more provocative side of American cinema in the 1970s and 1980s. The season begins on Saturday 29 August with Elaine May's Mikey and Nicky, marking its 50th anniversary, and continues with Looking for Mr Goodbar presented on 35mm, Hardcore, Hustle, and Cruising. Together, these films offer challenging and politically complex portraits of American society, reflecting a unique period in Hollywood history when filmmakers pushed the boundaries of mainstream studio filmmaking.

GFT also joins Sonica Glasgow 2026 with two special screenings exploring the intersection of cinema, music and contemporary culture. The programme includes a captioned screening of Sisters with Transistors on Monday 28 September and a rare chance to experience Godfrey Reggio's visually groundbreaking Koyaanisqatsi on Wednesday 30 September.

Looking ahead, GFT launches its new Rip It Up season with a screening of cult classic Quadrophenia on Thursday 1 October, with further titles to be announced.

Special Screenings and Events

September features an extensive programme of special screenings, guest events, anniversaries and filmmaker discussions.

On Thursday 10 September, audiences can attend a preview screening of documentary on the late singer-songwriter Beldina Odenyo, BEL, followed by a live-captioned Q&A with director Louise Lockwood and Leah McAleer, Bel's sister. The film then receives a wider run at GFT from 11 until 17 September. Audiences can also catch Saoirse Ronan’s latest dark comedy Bad Apples before anyone else with a special preview on Saturday 5 September, ahead of its general release on Friday 18 September.

Further special events include Frontera with a Q&A featuring director Judith Colell on Thursday 17 September, Pulp: What Do You Do for an Encore? with a live satellite Q&A on Friday 18 September — plus another screening featuring a recorded introduction on Saturday 19 September — and All Rivers Spill Their Stories to the Sea with director Jeanie Finlay in attendance on Monday 22 September.

The month also includes Borscht Film Club: Polish Comedy Shorts with a Q&A featuring Jan Bujnowski and a pre-recorded introduction by film critic Piotr Czerkawski on Wednesday 24 September, and a National Theatre Live screening of The Misanthrope, starring Sandra Oh, on Wednesday 23 September.

Glasgow Film Festival’s Animated Wednesdays strand continues Wednesday 9 September with Coyote vs. Acme followed by a networking event for ticket holders to connect with fellow animation enthusiasts and discover exciting work from across Scotland’s thriving animation industry.

To celebrate Glasgow Doors Open Day, GFT is opening its doors for a special behind-the-scenes morning on Sunday 20 September, giving visitors the chance to explore the iconic Rose Street building, discover its rich cinematic history, and enjoy free Projection Box tours.

As part of the celebrations, GFT will also be holding two free screenings: a Take 2 family screening of The Wizard of Oz on Saturday 19 September and a screening of Young Frankenstein on Sunday 20 September.

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New Releases and Re-releases

Among the month's major anniversary screenings are Terminator 2: Judgment Day – 35th Anniversary, Amores Perros – 25th Anniversary, and Manhunter: The Final Cut – 40th Anniversary, all restored in 4K.
New and recent releases screening throughout the month include Late Fame, Pressure, Everybody Digs Bill Evans, Super Nature, The Incomer, Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger, Leviticus, Bad Apples, Queen at Sea, The Cycle of Love, Babystar and Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie.
Classic cinema highlights include The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone and David Byrne's acclaimed concert film American Utopia, presented with a recorded introduction by Byrne. Two of French New Wave master Claude Chabrol’s films also feature: La Femme Infidèle and Le Boucher.

Accessible and Family Screenings

GFT continues its commitment to Cinema For All through its regular accessible and family-friendly programme.
The cinema’s weekly Take 2 strand continues on Saturday mornings with screenings of family favourites. As well as a GYFF screening of Barbie, this month’s programme includes Horton Hears a Who! and The Wizard of Oz. It also features a Take 2: Access screening of The Rugrats Movie in a relaxed and welcoming environment for neurodivergent children and families. All are welcome.
Movie Memories, GFT’s dementia-friendly film event, presents a screening of iconic British comedy The Full Monty on Thursday 17 September. Designed to enable people living with
dementia to socialise in a safe and welcoming environment, Movie Memories screenings offer a relaxed atmosphere for audiences and carers.
Access Film Club, delivered in partnership with the National Autistic Society Scotland, presents Objectified on 14 September, accompanied by a post-film discussion in a welcoming and supportive environment.
Holders of Glasgow Film’s 15-25 card will be invited to a free screening of dystopian coming-of-age drama, Happyend.
Tickets for GFT's September programme are on sale from 2:10pm on Wednesday 26 August from glasgowfilm.org and the GFT Box Office.
GFT is operated by Glasgow Film, an educational charity which also runs the award-winning Glasgow Film Festival and Glasgow Youth Film Festival and is the lead organisation for Film Hub Scotland. GFT is the city's original independent arthouse cinema and the home of film in Glasgow. Glasgow Film is funded by Creative Scotland and Screen Scotland.
Glasgow Youth Film Festival receives funding from Young Start. Young Start aims to create opportunities for Scotland’s children and young people aged eight to 24 to help them realise their full potential. Young Start is a grants programme run by The National Lottery Community Fund, which distributes money from dormant bank accounts. Dormant accounts are deposits of money in bank and building society accounts where there has been no activity for 15 years or more.

Glasgow Youth Film Festival also receives funding from Towards Better Futures, an employability program by Glasgow City Council that helps young people prepare for work, training, or further education.

BIFA Cinema of the Year Award

GFT is inviting audiences to support the venue in this year's British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) Cinema of the Year Award. Nominated cinemas from across the UK are recognised for the vital role they play in their local communities, championing great film and creating memorable cinema experiences. The award is voted for by cinemagoers, giving audiences the chance to celebrate and support their favourite independent cinema. GFT encourages film lovers to cast their vote and help showcase the important role the cinema continues to play in Glasgow's cultural life.

Vote for GFT here

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