JAMES McAvoy was mobbed by fans as he arrives at Glasgow’s Film Theatre to be recognised for his outstanding contribution to cinema by his home city. The Hollywood actor, 45, was presented with the Cinema City Honorary Award by the Glasgow Film Festival (GFF) on Sunday. He spent time outside the famous Rose Street venue talking to punters, taking selfies and signing autographs before taking part in a special event in his name. In a career spanning film, TV and stage productions, Glaswegian McAvoy’s best-known roles include Dr Nicolas Garrigan in the 2006 film The Last King Of Scotland and Professor Charles Xavier in the blockbuster X-Men franchise. Speaking outside the GFT, he said: “It’s humbling, it’s a massive honour. “I never thought for a second when I started acting at the age of 16 that I would even get another job, let alone be here, 29 years later, getting a lovely award from my home city.” He was presented with the award not far from where he studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD), now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. McAvoy is currently working on his directorial debut, California Schemin', which tells the true story of Scots rappers who duped label bosses into handing him a record deal by posing as an Eminem protégé. California Schemin’ will tell how Gavin Bain, 43, and best pal Billy Boyd partied with Madonna, appeared on MTV and performed with hip hop heroes after claiming they were US MCs named Silibil N’ Brains. They tricked industry experts into believing they were pals of the biggest names in rap by ditching their accents for an American twang. Drumchapel-born McAvoy was spotted filming scenes at the city’s iconic Barrowland ballroom in November. McAvoy said directing is a "very different pace" from acting but that he is really enjoying it. He said: "I am six weeks into the editing process, won't be finished post-production until August, but it's going really well. "My cast is amazing and they make me laugh and cry every day in the edit. "And it's also just a whole new world for me because I'm just used to finishing a job and going onto the next one, but now I live with it. "So it's been two and a half years since we started shooting, probably a full year of my life, through production and post-production. So a very different tempo, but I'm really enjoying it." The film is based on Gavin Bain's autobiography, California Schemin', which was later reprinted as Straight Outta Scotland. McAvoy, who grew up in the Drumchapel area, said that coming from a council estate in Glasgow himself he wanted to tell stories about people from similar backgrounds but also create something entertaining. He said: "I was interested in telling a story not just solely set in Scotland, but about people from backgrounds where they have fewer opportunities, whether that's council estates or whatever, but at the same time, telling a story that was entertaining and aspirational, and not just dwelling on the grime and dirt, which is part of that sort of lower economic background, definitely. "But it's not all there is, and sometimes it is all there is on film. And I come from a council estate in Glasgow, I wanted to tell stories about people from that kind of place but also entertain. And this story definitely gives the opportunity to do that." McAvoy took part in a sold-out In Conversation event at the GFT on Sunday, looking back at a career that has taken him from Glasgow to the heights of Hollywood stardom. It was followed by a special screening of his breakthrough role in The Last King Of Scotland, introduced by McAvoy himself. In the 1930s, Glasgow was said to be home to more cinemas per person than anywhere else in the UK and became affectionately known as the Cinema City. Last year, the inaugural Cinema City Honorary Award went to The Lord Of The Rings star Viggo Mortensen.