Spotlight on Creativity: EFX Awards at the Glasgow Film Festival

Renowned for its vibrant and inclusive programme, the Glasgow Film Festival (GFF) is a true celebration of storytelling in all its forms. Founded in 2005, this bold festival has gone from 6,000 attendances in its first edition to more than 43,000 in recent years, GFF is now proudly one of the UK’s most significant film festivals, and an unmissable moment in the international film calendar.

Each year, it brings together bold new voices, established filmmakers, and passionate audiences to champion cinema that challenges, entertains, and inspires.

From independent features and international premieres to powerful documentaries and genre-defying work, the festival shines a spotlight on stories that deserve to be seen and heard. This year’s 12 day event hosted 126 films across 12 days, including 16 World, European and International premieres, 68 UK premieres, and 18 Scottish premieres, with titles from 44 countries and six continents.

We’re incredibly proud to see our work on the red carpet as part of the festival’s awards, where EFX had the honour of crafting two special awards, The Cinema City Honorary Award & Audience Award. Designed and produced with precision and care, these awards aren’t just awards—they are a reflection of everything the festival stands for, echoing the creativity and prestige of the films being honoured. Our sales manager & design team worked closely with the client to achieve the stunning end result, two awards that felt as distinctive as the stories they celebrate.

The event came to a close with a star-studded UK premiere of James McAvoy’s directorial debut California Schemin’. Where McAvoy walked the red carpet for GFF accompanied with the film’s stars, Samuel Bottomley, Séamus McLean Ross, Lucy Halliday & Rebekah Murrell.

James McAvoy, director of California Schemin’, said: “Bringing the film home to a Scottish audience and celebrating it in such an iconic cinema makes the moment incredibly special for all of us who made it.”

The winner of the GFF26 Audience Award was Mélisa Godet’s A Place For Her, won very aptly on the 8th March, International Women’s Day – when winning the award, Godet said: “When you have the privilege of making a film like this one, you dream that it might touch people’s hearts. It seems that is indeed the case here at the Glasgow Film Festival. And on this day, International Women’s Day, this award takes on a very special meaning. Long live women! Long live cinema! And all those who love them!”

Distinctive Awards

Inspired by the GFF logo and branding, in two iterations, the striking awards were realised in clear recycled acrylic and oak veneer with a black anodised aluminium base and then digitally printed/laser engraved.

The client had this to say about the finished design and working with EFX – “It was a pleasure to collaborate with EFX on our Audience Award and The Cinema City Honorary Awards for GFF26. Sales Manager Oli Smith and the design team provided an exceptional service, with clear communication throughout, resulting in two beautiful awards that truly reflected GFF’s brand and core values while also being cost-effective. We would highly recommend EFX and look forward to working with them again in the future.”

Being part of such an exciting event is always a privilege, but seeing those awards in the hands of talented winners, captured in that moment of recognition, is what it’s all about.

Photo credits-

Amy Muir – The Cinema City Honorary Award (Lynne Ramsay)

Ryan Rutherford – Audience Award on Red Carpet