A pre-release screening of Ken Loach's new film, which was made in County Durham, is to be a highlight at this year's North East International Film Festival and its cast also will be attending.

The festival will be returning in September with another packed schedule of screenings, workshops, Q&As and industry meet-and-greet events, all culminating in an awards ceremony with prizes going to winners selected in a range of fim categories. This year's submissions include works directed by comedy favourites Ricky Gervais and Joe Lycett while among the screenings will be one featuring Peter Andre's first film role.

There will be plenty for film buffs to enjoy during NEIFF's September 25 to October 1 run and ahead of the run a stand-out moment is set to be a special screening on September 23 of Loach's The Old Oak, with its cast taking part in a question-and-answer alongside it. The delighted festival director Lisa-Marie Tonelli, who launched the debut event in 2021, says this will be the first competitive film festival to be given a pre-release screening of the drama.

Read more: Chronicle goes behind the scenes during filming of The Old Oak

Save for an early cast and crew event in Newcastle, The Old Oak has been shown only at festivals abroad where its tale about the clash between residents of a former mining community and newly-arrived refugees from Syria has won huge praise from critics. It made its debut at Cannes earlier this year, where it was nominated for the Palme d'Or which I, Daniel Blake - the first of Loach's three North East-made films - won in 2016.

Spectators listen to Ken Loach make a speech before the screening of The Old Oak at the 76th Locarno International Film Festival in Switzerland this August. Credit: Jean-Christophe Bott
Spectators listen to Ken Loach make a speech before the screening of The Old Oak at the 76th Locarno International Film Festival in Switzerland this August

Like its predecessor, Loach's second local film Sorry We Missed You, it may have just missed out on that prestigious award but at its Cannes screening the director was given a standing ovation. And now The Old Oak has just followed up with a win at The Locarno Film Festival in Spain, taking the 'Prix du Public' - the prize of the public.

The film is due for release in cinemas countrywide this autumn but now Newcastle audiences will have a first chance to see the movie shot on home turf when it officially opens the NEIFF before the screening programme gets under way. It will be shown in the Everyman Cinema in the city centre from 7.30pm on September 23.

The festival also has a partnership this year with Anarchy Brew Co. which is creating a new beer specially for the occasion. The makers of Blonde Star and Citra Star have come up with the new Movie Star, in honour of the festival, which will be a permanent addition to its brews and will be sold in supermarkets and bars.

The design for the logo for the beer sees the NEIFF's own logo captured within the 'O' of its Movie Star name. When the festival gets under way, people also will be able to scan the beer's interactive barcodes for up-to-date festival information and some will also have golden tickets behind them with a chance to win prizes.

The ongoing collaboration between the festival and Anarchy Brew Co. is also set to include future one-off screenings at the brewery throughout the year.

To book tickets for The Old Oak, which will be limited, see here. For the full upcoming festival programme and ticket details for NEIFF keep an eye out on its website here.