James Mcavoy’s premiere party moved after Glasgow Central Station fire
James McAvoy’s directorial debut, California Schemin’, closed the Glasgow Film Festival on Sunday, and a planned gala inside the station hotel was shifted at the last minute when a fire on Union Street forced the venue to shut. Cast and crew gathered instead at Berlinkys on Sauchiehall Street after the Central Hotel and station were closed.
Glasgow Central Station closure and the Union Street blaze
The closing-night party for California Schemin’ was due to be held inside the Central Hotel at Glasgow Central Station on Sunday, but organizers moved the event to Berlinkys on Sauchiehall Street after a fire on Union Street. Around 60 firefighters were called at 3: 46 pm ET on Sunday after a blaze broke out on the ground floor of a commercial building; that building has now collapsed, and Glasgow Central Station will remain closed on Monday morning with services suspended.
Cast and crew who had attended the debut screening instead headed to the alternate venue. McAvoy said he is “really proud” of the upcoming biopic movie that marked his directorial debut.
Magenta Light Studios acquires US theatrical rights for California Schemin’
Bob Yari’s Magenta Light Studios has acquired US theatrical rights to California Schemin’, which premiered in Toronto last year and closed Glasgow Film Festival on Sunday, March 8 (ET). Magenta Light Studios negotiated the acquisition with UTA Independent Film Group on behalf of the filmmakers and plans a nationwide theatrical release later this year.
Bankside Films represents international rights and served as executive producers on the project. Production credits include Danny Page of Homefront Productions and Michael Mendelsohn of Patriot Pictures alongside Paul Aniello and Simon Kay, with finance from Union Patriot Capital and funding from The National Lottery through Screen Scotland.
Actors, roles and an April 10 UK and Ireland release
The feature charts the story of the Dundee rap duo Silibil N’ Brains, and stars Seamus McLean Ross, Samuel Bottomley and Lucy Halliday; James McAvoy also features in the film. Samuel Bottomley and Seamus McLean Ross will portray rappers Billy Boyd and Gavin Bain respectively. Archie Thomson and Elaine Gracie adapted the screenplay from Gavin Bain’s autobiography California Schemin’, later reissued as Straight Outta Scotland.
California Schemin’ will be released in UK and Irish cinemas by Studiocanal on April 10 (ET). The film follows a previous screen exploration of the same story in the 2013 SXSW documentary The Great Hip Hop Hoax.
For now the immediate fallout from the Union Street blaze is tangible: Glasgow Central Station remains closed on Monday morning with services suspended, and a gala that had been planned inside the station moved to a city centre venue instead. The film, meanwhile, heads toward a UK and Irish release on April 10 and a planned US theatrical rollout later this year under Magenta Light Studios.
