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Phil Miller Arts Correspondent
Home-grown stars such as Billy Connolly, Kelly Macdonald and Robbie Coltrane are expected to join fellow cast members Julie Walters, Emma Thompson and Kevin McKidd for the premiere of Brave in Los Angeles on June 18.
First Minister Alex Salmond will also be flying the flag for Scotland in an effort to ensure that publicity for the 3D Pixar movie is translated into tourists.
Trainspotting star Macdonald voices the character of Merida, an independently minded princess and skilled archer in the mythical Scottish kingdom of DunBroch. Connolly provides the voice of King Fergus.
Scottish composer Patrick Doyle wrote the score and Gaelic singer Julie Fowlis contributes soundtrack vocals.
VisitScotland has invested £7m in a linked promotional campaign, the biggest in its history, to try to cash in on interest surrounding the movie.The worldwide campaign with Brave-themed TV advertisements will be in collaboration with Disney.
Mike Cantlay, chairman of VisitScotland, will attend the red-carpet event.
He said he wanted to convert cinema-goers into visitors to Scotland with the campaign.
The premiere at tinseltown's Dolby Theatre will be sponsored by VisitScotland, as part of the Los Angeles Film Festival.
Scotland will welcome the movie to the Edinburgh International Film Festival on June 30 at an event attended by Mr Salmond, before it is released in Scotland on August 3 and in the rest of the UK at the end of the month.
Ricky Strauss, president of marketing at Disney Studios, said: "With a spirited heroine and enchanting setting in the ancient Scottish Highlands, Brave represents some exciting firsts for Pixar.
"We are proud that the world premiere of Brave will serve as the inaugural premiere at the new Dolby Theatre as part of the LA Film Festival – a fitting way to launch Merida's extraordinary adventure."
The promotional department at Disney, Pixar's parent company, are also making a big push on Brave.
Last month, the press junket in Edinburgh welcomed 250 international and UK journalists, with a dinner at Edinburgh Castle and a press conference with stars of the film, including Kevin McKidd and the head of Pixar, John Lasseter.
Reviews of the film were embargoed until today, after a special press screening.
At Disneyland in California a new area of the theme park is being turned into the "Scottish Highlands", where Merida – "a headstrong teenager with a vibrant spirit and softness of heart" – will be a prominent character.
VisitScotland estimates that the economic impact of the promotional drive will be in the region of 20:1, so its investment of £7m will reap a benefit of £140m.
Brave will be shown in 72 countries around the world and its broad audience, the agency hopes, will mean "a whole new generation will identify with this film" – and so with Scotland.
REVIEW: It's a kind of magic that Scots bring to a bold cinematic feast
by Alison Rowat * * * * *
FROM Brigadoon to Local Hero, cinema has long had a soft spot for Scotland.
But it takes the sprinkling of a certain sort of animation magic, Pixar magic to be precise, to make the place look like heaven on earth, as it does in Brave.
From the lava-like locks of its young heroine (who initially bears an alarming resemblance to Rebekah Brooks: don't worry, it passes), to the majestic hues of the heather, Brave features every colour in the Scottish rainbow and makes up some new ones just because it can.
Visual splendour taken care of, there's a story to chew on that's thrilling, funny, and yes, a little bit brave. Queue here for slapstick comedy and in-jokes for the oldies. At the same time, Mark Andrews' picture has some surprisingly spiky things to say about mothers and daughters and escaping convention. It's not exactly The Female Eunuch with cuddly woodland creatures, but this is intelligent, bold fare from the people who turned a rodent into a chef in Ratatouille and sent a septuagenarian floating across the sky in Up.
Brave tells the story of Merida, a princess growing up in an olde worlde Scotland (the exact date has been lost in the mists of time). Voiced by Kelly Macdonald, Merida has so far enjoyed an idyllic upbringing, with her strict mother (Emma Thompson) supplying the rules, and her big daft father (Billy Connolly – perfect) the laughs. But now Merida is to be married, an idea she takes to like a cat to the 100 metres backstroke. Vowing to defy tradition, she little realises the consequences coming her way.
The story is simple by Pixar standards, which might disappoint those hankering after a Wall.E-style depth, or the layers to be found in the Toy Story tales. Yet clean and lean suits the film's muscular themes of loyalty and pride.
The Scots characters, mercifully, speak in authentic Scots voices. There is none of the Dick Van Dyke approach to accents here. Balancing Macdonald's sing-song tones is Connolly's grizzly bear growl, while Thompson, bringing dramatic heft to proceedings, has a gentle Morningside accent with a dab of Lewis. These genuine Scottish voices, moreover, say bona fide Scottish words like "tattie-boggle" and "manky". World, get ready to Google.
Those prone to blubbing – you know who you are, dads – should know that Brave is as ruthless in bringing a lump to the throat as the Disney classics of old. Besides tears there will be gasps of fright as well. But there's laughter and love and spectacle and magic here too. What a sublime tartan Pixar has woven.
No wonder VisitScotland is excited (and a certain First Minister too). Scotland as heaven on earth. Jings. Now all we need to do is get rid of the midges.
Edinburgh International Film Festival, June 30; on general release in Scotland, August 3.
