A BAFTA winning screenwriter hailed Bradford International Film Festival as ‘the best in the North’ as film-lovers gathered for its first night at the National Media Museum yesterday.

Matt Greenhalgh, writer of Control and Nowhere Boy, said it was an ‘honour’ to have his latest film, The Look Of Love, open the 19th annual festival, which will see around 200 films from across the world shown at the landmark museum over 11 days.

Speaking before the screening in the UNESCO City of Film, he said: “I’m very honoured to be in Bradford and am looking forward to opening up the festival, which I believe is the best in the North.

“When you work in film you don’t often get to as many festivals as you want because you’re writing and you can’t go, but Bradford’s programme this year looks fantastic.

“It makes me wish I could stay and watch all the films.”

The Look of Love, directed by Michael Winterbottom and starring Steve Coogan, follows Paul Raymond, a nude theatre owner and top-shelf magazine publisher, as he approaches retirement and begins to consider his legacy.

Mr Greenhalgh, who won the Carl Foreman Award for special achievement by a British director, writer or producer in their first feature film for Control in 2008, said he was looking forward to holding a question and answer session after it was shown.

“This is the sharp end of the knife, because after all the talk and preview screenings you get to see the audience’s reaction. I’ll be watching the whole film again, even though I’ve already watched it four times.”

Festival director Tom Vincent said the film had been chosen to kick off the festival because ‘it is a film about putting on a show’.

“Paul Raymond was all about showmanship. It’s a really good example of someone on top of their game.”

Meanwhile, Mr Young told how the film festival attracted people from across the world as well as familiar faces who attended each year.

“People have said they’re very pleased with the range of films – we have films from every decade from 1890.

“It’s great to show these films on the big screen, especially in a time where everybody’s watching things on devices that are smaller and smaller.”

Dutch filmmaker Martijn Maria Smits, who is on the festival’s jury, told how he got involved after meeting Mr Young at a film festival in Lisbon in 2010. He will show his short film, Under the Weight of Clouds, at the festival on Wednesday.

“This is my first time in Bradford and I’m looking forward to watching the films,” he said.

For more information about the festival, follow @BradFilmFest on Twitter.