Manchester's fifth-annual Commonwealth Film Festival will open on April 28 with Sebastien Rose's Canadian drama Life With My Father.

Sarah Watt's Australian hit Look Both Ways will close the festival on May 7.

The festival, which promotes film production in the Commonwealth countries, will screen more than 200 features, documentaries, and shorts at 12 venues.

Other gala screenings are Thom Fitzgerald's 3 Needles, Eric Khoo's Be With Me, Amnon Buchbinder's Whole New Thing, Buddhadeb Dasgupta's Memories in the Mist, Bipin Nadkarni's Journey to the Other Side, Richard E. Grant's Wah-Wah, Francis Leclerc's Looking for Alexander, and Luc Picard's Audition.

The programming strands include gay and lesbian films, films that connect performing arts and film, contemporary films from Singapore, music films and promos, and horror films.

Special programmes include a digital distribution discussion, a screenwriting masterclass, and a night devoted to emerging film-makers from the region.

Screen International is a media partner of the event.