From the moment the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival ends, the speculation begins about who will possibly attend the following year or what films may be screened. Then, the long wait begins before it rolls around again. Well, it's finally back and today, JDIFF launched their new programme for the festival which boasts over 222 hours of film over 11 screens. Among the stars who will be attending are Richard Dreyfuss, who will be the subject of a Q&A at a special screening of Jaws, John Hurt, Terry Gilliam, Brendan Gleeson, Richard Ayoade, Jason Priestley and Brenda Fricker. As we mentioned just a couple of weeks back, John Michael McDonagh's Calvary will be opening the festival with a special guest appearance from Brendan Gleeson. Today, we heard that The Stag starring Amy Huberman, Andrew Scott and Hugh O'Conor will be closing the festival. Two great Irish films to round off both the opening and closing. Richard Dreyfuss will be in attendance for both Jaws and his film Cas & Dylan, directed by Jason Priestley who will also be in Dublin for the festival. Yes, that Jason Priestley. Terry Gilliam will also be attending the festival for his film, The Zero Theorem. Both Dreyfuss and Gilliam are due to receive a Volta, an award from the festival. Included in the Out of the Past section of the programme are the brilliant The Deer Hunter, the wonderful Umbrellas of Cherbourg and the excellent Dawn of the Dead, arguably one of the greatest horrors of all time which will be scored by Goblin. Other great picks for the festival include Jonathan Glazer's Under the Skin starring Scarlett Johansson as an alien who lures lonely Glaswegians back to her van before ending their lives. Under the Skin has been doing amazingly well on the festival circuit, receiving rave reviews in Cannes. Glazer will be attending the festival also. Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel is also one of the new features which will be screened, the adaptation of Half of a Yellow Sun starring Thandie Newton, A Long Way from Home which will see the return to JDIFF of Brenda Fricker and A Thousand Times Good Night starring Juliette Binoche and Maria Doyle Kennedy. As always, JDIFF likes to promote not just current film, but the future of film and with this in mind, their workshops this year are second to none. In total, there are 19 workshops and events inlcuding production, screenwriting and a special demonstration of special effects. Festival Director Grainne Humphreys commented: "We’re particularly proud to be opening and closing the festival this year with remarkable Irish films, both of which demonstrate the Irish industry’s ability to produce quality films that can be positioned on a world stage. The selection of films has been very carefully considered and chosen to ensure that there is very much something for all audiences. I’m really looking forward to hearing feedback from audiences on the films they loved, and the guests they loved meeting during our annual presentation of Dublin as the city of film in February." The box office will be open on Tuesday 21st January at 10am over on jdiff.com so make sure to buy your tickets early as events sell out pretty quickly! Oh, and don't forget that surprise film speculation! Let it begin now.