THIS year's Edinburgh International Film Festival will close with one of the most hotly anticipated film events of the year – the European premiere of Pixar's Brave, a star-studded animation set in a mythical Scotland.

The film will bring a roster of A-list Scottish talent to the capital in June and marks a significant coup for new artistic director Chris Fujiwara.

Disney-owned Pixar is the company behind critically acclaimed global hits such as Toy Story, WALL-E and Up, and among the stars lending their voices to Brave are Billy Connolly, Kelly Macdonald, Robbie Coltrane, Emma Thompson, Craig Ferguson and Kevin McKidd.

First Minister Alex Salmond announced the news during a speech at VisitScotland's Winning Years Conference in Perth yesterday. Promising that "Hollywood would roll into town" on June 30, the day Brave screens, he said he foresaw a "step change" in tourism as a result of its release. Mr Fujiwara said: "It makes perfect sense that this film, which is so strongly tied to the cultural mythology of Scotland and the beauty of the Scottish landscape, and in which Scottish talent has such a significant involvement, should be part of our festival."

Brave tells the tale of Merida (Kelly Macdonald), a skilled archer and the feisty flame-haired daughter of King Fergus (Connolly), who inadvertently unleashes chaos when she defies an age-old custom and goes against three local lords, voiced by Coltrane, Ferguson and McKidd.