Book Festival opens this morning

Today’s the day! The 2021 Edinburgh International Book Festival begins!

Join us in-person at Edinburgh College of Art at the University of Edinburgh or live online for the first day of our first ever hybrid Festival, from our brand new home!

See what’s on today at a glance below, and head to our website to book tickets to watch live in-person or online:

https://edbookfest.co.uk/the-festival/events?

Edinburgh International Film Festival programme revealed

The 74th Edinburgh International Film Festival takes place at the heart of Edinburgh’s festival season, between 18 and 25 August, and presents a fantastic programme of feature and short films celebrating the long-awaited return to cinema.

This special programme of in-person and digital screenings includes 31 new features and 73 shorts – with 18 marking their world and 3 international premieres at the Festival – and with 50% of the new features in the EIFF 2021 programme from a female director or co-director.

The majority of Festival screenings take place at the Festival’s home, Filmhouse, with the Opening Gala and Special Preview at Festival Theatre and special screenings at partner venues across Scotland, along with introductions, Q&As, in person events and more screenings being available through a dedicated, accessible streaming platform Filmhouse at Home.

Watch Programme Launch video here: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQQC3GZcv7o

EIFF is supported by Screen Scotland, the PLACE Programme (a partnership between the Scottish Government, City of Edinburgh Council and the Edinburgh Festivals), the Scottish Government through the Festivals Expo Fund, the City of Edinburgh Council, EventScotland and the British Film Institute (BFI) using funds from the National Lottery.

EIFF 2021 PROGRAMME

Reflecting the diversity of stories and storytellers from across the world, EIFF’s 2021 programme includes two hugely anticipated musicals: hot from Cannes where it won the Best Director award, the UK premiere of Leos Carax’s Annette starring Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard, co-written by pop legends Sparks and a Special Preview screening of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie at Festival Theatre with a starry cast including Sharon Horgan and Richard E. Grant, and newcomer Max Harwood in the title role.

The Festival opens with the European Premiere of Michael Sarnoski’s Pig with Nicolas Cage as a reclusive truffle hunter and closes with the UK Premiere of Here Today from the comedy legend Billy Crystal, also featuring Tiffany Haddish.

Following in the footsteps of Whisky Galore! which premiered at EIFF in 2016, two Scottish films exploring island life receive their World Premieres at EIFF: a documentary Prince of Muck following the continuing battles of elderly patriarch Lawrence MacEwen and Hebridean feature drama The Road Dance based on a best-selling book by STV News presenter John MacKay who also stars in the film.

Determination in the face of adversity and addressing the social issues permeating societies around the world are strongly represented in this year’s programme. The UK premiere of Haider Rashid’s Europa starring British-Libyan Adam Ali as a young Iraqi refugee sees him fighting to survive in the wilderness and with ‘Migrant Hunters’ on his trail while Oscar-nominated Kaouther Ben Hania’s The Man Who Sold His Skin focuses on a young Syrian refugee who agreed to having his back tattooed in exchange for a better life in Europe.

Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha’s Ballad of a White Cow sees a wife fighting against the broken justice system in Iran after her husband is executed for a crime he did not commit and New Zealand’s The Justice of Bunny King tells the story of a troubled single mother trying to get the custody of her children back.

In documentaries, Walk with Angels offers a visceral look at South Africa’s legacy of Apartheid and child trafficking and Rebel Dykes explores the underground lesbian community in London in the 80s and the country’s lack of response to the AIDS crisis.

Two very personal documentaries, Radiograph of a Family from Firouzeh Khosrovani centres on the director’s parents and uses them as a lens to look at Iran’s society split between secular and Islamic beliefs and Alicia Cano Menoni’s Bosco focuses on the director’s grandfather living in Uruguay and his ancestoral roots in a small Italian village.

Highlighting contemporary social issues, documentary The Gig Is Up shines light on the forgotten gig economy workforce, from Deliveroo to Amazon, and the European Premiere of Jennifer Ngo’s Faceless centres on the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. Continuing the theme of the gig economy and its recent struggles, Laurent Garnier: Off The Record tells the little-known story of the legendary French DJ and the political response to rave culture.

This year’s programme also showcases the best of horror from two EIFF-returners: impeccable Rebecca Hall in The Night House from the genre innovator David Bruckner and Martyrs Lane from Ruth Platt reinventing the classic ghost story. In animation, the legendary Academy Award-winning director and animator Phil Tippett presents the second instalment of his Miltonesque Mad God.

The quirky French feature comedy Mandibles sees two friends trying to train a giant fly to make money off of it and Norway’s Ninjababy beautifully blends animation and live action to tell the story of a young cartoonist and her unexpected pregnancy.

An ambitious programme of short films – fiction, animation, documentary and experimental aka Black Box – divided into 7 strands by theme, explore a fantastic range of topics and issues: in short animation, Imaginings delve into the recesses of the human mind and Family Values look at how our lives are shaped by values that are handed down to us; in short fiction and documentary, One Step at the Time is rooted in the present moment, showing snapshots from all around the world, Visions project forward, imagining our future lives or alternative realities; and in Black Box we find Interconnections exploring the themes of collaboration and interrelation and Interruptions, a diverse programme playfully confounding the aesthetic expectations of the audience.

Some of the highlights include Ba, about growing up in Soviet Kazakhstan, a child seeking refuge from his stark reality in Romanian Candy Can, animated Hangman at Home exploring the awkward intimacy of humanness and Keith Water, a stop motion animation made from found materials during the 2020 lockdown.

The shorts programme also includes SHORTCUTS – Views From The Four Nations, presented in Edinburgh and France through a partnership with the Dinard Festival of British Film, led by Artistic Director Dominique Green. DFBF and EIFF are twinning to show together a selection of the best of recent British shorts.

All short films are available to audiences digitally on Filmhouse at Home. EIFF Shorts and Experimental films are sponsored by Innis & Gunn, with support from the Culture & Business Fund Scotland, managed by Arts & Business Scotland.

Tickets go on sale at 12 noon TODAY (Wednesday 28 July) for Filmhouse Members, and then on general sale at 12 noon on Thursday 29 July.

Festival audiences will have a chance to vote for their favourite film which will receive the 2021 Audience Award.

For more information and a full schedule of physical and digital screenings please visit www.edfilmfest.org.uk.

Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival

With just a week until the start of @EdinburghJazz festival – @brassgumbo kicked off the summer festivals season.

You can view the full programme incl 20 live concerts and 42 online concerts and events welcoming audiences in person and online:

https://edinburghjazzfestival.com/whats-on

Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival is back for 2021 with an exciting programme showcasing the amazing music coming out of Scotland! We can’t wait to welcome you online and in-person at Assembly Roxy. 

Live Assembly Roxy

We are delighted we can welcome some small, socially-distanced audiences to Assembly Roxy over the ten days of the festival. We have 20 concerts with live audiences. Tickets are priced at £20 per person and are sold in bubbles of 1 or 2 people to allow us to seat you safely. Please note that our capacity is very limited so book early! 

All of our live concerts will also be live-streamed so, if you can’t make it in person, you can buy a digital ticket for £10. 

20 pre-recorded concerts

In addition to our live concerts, we also have 20 pre-recorded online concerts, each costing £10. All our online content is available for 72 hours so you can watch at your leisure! 

Concerts will be sold individually, but you can buy a Festival Pass giving access to all 40 online concerts, plus a few exclusives, for just £40!

Happy Hours!

Hospitality sector granted extended opening hours during summer festivals

Pubs and restaurants in the Capital will once again be able to take advantage of extended opening hours during the festival season this summer.

Edinburgh’s Licensing Board has agreed to allow each on-sale licensed establishment with a seasonal variation in their licence to extend their normal opening times for an additional two hours, if public health guidance allows.

The dates for this year are 6 – 30 August to tie in with the Festival Fringe and the Edinburgh International Festival (7 – 29 August).

Convener of the Licensing Board, Councillor Norman Work, said:It’s been a tough year for the hospitality sector and as a Board we recognise the need to do everything we can to support licensed premises to help them operate as normally as they can within any COVID-19 restrictions in force at the time.

“The majority of pubs and restaurants have seasonal variations in their licence covering the summer festivals. That means that as long as public health guidance allows, many businesses will be able to take advantage of increased trade with extended opening hours during August, which is great news for the city.”

Lights, camera, action: 74th Edinburgh International Film Festival goes ahead in August

  • A ‘new look’ innovative EIFF set to deliver in person events in Edinburgh and beyond with indoor and outdoor cinema experiences alongside online festival screenings celebrating film’s ability to bind us together
  • Festival focused on bringing communities together and championing Scottish and UK filmmaking talent in the heart of the August festival season
  • Filmhouse and a network of cinemas across Scotland set to collaborate in a joyous communal celebration of the return to cinema
  • Spectacular FREE outdoor screenings of films in St Andrew Square for ‘Film Fest in the City’ from 19-25 August will form the centre of the Festival’s invitation to audiences in this unique year
  • Innovative programme of new features, documentaries, animations, experimental and shorts programmed by a team of regular and guest programmers led by Nick Varley to address big issues, champion social change and invite new audiences to become involved
  • As a kick off for the return of Edinburgh’s festivals in August, EIFF will present ‘Film Fest on the Forth’, a fantastic aquatically themed programme of outdoor waterside screenings on 31 July and 1 August at Port Edgar Marina, South Queensferry
  • Filmhouse at Home widens access to the Festival programme and additional content online connecting global thought leaders with local and international audiences
  • EIFF Talent Lab returns online to give practical support to 24 writers, directors or producers working on their first feature film
  • EIFF Youth programme, inspiring and supporting the filmmakers and curators of tomorrow, to run in person and in an online programme 20 – 23 August.

Edinburgh International Film Festival is delighted to announce today that it will return in a new and innovative form this summer running 18- 25 August 2021.

Championing Scottish and UK filmmaking, the Festival will include physical screenings and events indoors in Filmhouse Cinema and outdoors with Film Fest in the City in St Andrew Square, in a rich and diverse programme celebrating the return to cinemas and the collective cinema experience.

The festival will also be available to audiences across the UK through its online platform, Filmhouse at Home, where alongside the films viewers can access Q&As and hear first-hand the insights, experiences and passions of directors, filmmakers and actors.

In addition, the Festival is collaborating with partners to widen its reach through a programme of presentations across Scotland, opening up access and inspiring curiosity in many who may previously not have been able to experience the Festival programme. More will be announced in the coming weeks.

Film Fest in the City in St Andrew Square Gardens will deliver a free programme of cinematic favourites, delivered in partnership with Essential Edinburgh and supported by Johnnie Walker, EIFF’s Official Whisky Partner, Innis & Gunn, EIFF’s Official Beer Partner, and EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate.

A watery themed, Film Fest on the Forth (31 July & 1 August) will show films the whole family can enjoy at a purpose built outdoor cinema space at Port Edgar Marina in the shadow of the Forth’s iconic bridges. Film Fest on the Forth is also supported EventScotland in celebration of Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 20/21.

The Festival’s first priority at all its screenings and events will be the safety of its audiences and guests.

This year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival programme has been brought together by a team of regular and guest programmers led by Nick Varley, founder and former co-CEO of distributor Park Circus.

Alongside Nick, guest programmers Christophe Mercier, formerly Fox Searchlight and Warner Bros, who is working on the international selection and Nada Cirjanic formerly Great Point Media and Independent Film Sales, who is focused on UK titles who together will bring together a condensed programme of features which will join documentaries programmed by Rohan Crickmar, animations selected by Abigail Addison, shorts programmed by Jenny Clarke and experimental films selected by Lydia Beilby and Kim Knowles..

Selections will seek opportunities to both find new ways to bring people together around unique cultural experiences and address the huge social changes and climate issues that face the planet after more than a year in lockdown, bringing the insights of global thought leaders to Festival audiences and championing social change and action.

The full programme will be announced and tickets go on sale on Wednesday 28 July. Announcements on outdoor programmes, opening and closing films will be made in due course.

EIFF will open accreditation for press and industry screenings following the programme launch.

EIFF Talent Lab 2021 adopts a virtual format running across two weekends in August (13-15 & 20-21). The Lab will support writers, directors and producers from Scotland, the UK and internationally, with a programme designed to help them take next steps towards their first feature film.

This year EIFF Youth, supported by Baillie Gifford, will gather in Edinburgh over the middle weekend of the Festival, and online over an extended weekend, to take part in workshops, access career advice, look at environmental issues in cinema production, meet and interview filmmakers.

EIFF Youth and EIFF Talent Lab are funded through the PLACE programme, a partnership between the Scottish Government through Creative Scotland, the City of Edinburgh Council and the Edinburgh Festivals.

Edinburgh International Film Festival is also teaming up with Filmarket Hub to launch a new talent showcase, to be announced on 28 May.

Ken Hay, CEO of Edinburgh International Film Festival, said: “We all love film and we’re delighted that EIFF is back in 2021, focusing on bringing communities together and celebrating the communal cinema experience as widely and inclusively as possible.

“The Festival will play a leading role in hailing the return to cinema-going and champion Scottish and UK films to audiences and industry around the world. We also believe that in this year particularly, that EIFF has a strong role to play in highlighting key social issues and will seek to deliver a programme that inspires curiosity and action in our audiences.”

Culture Minister Jenny Gilruth said: “I am delighted that the Edinburgh International Film Festival is returning this summer with a programme that extends across Scotland. 

“As well as celebrating the collective cinema experience, the Festival will also help writers, directors and producers take next steps towards their first feature film through the Talent Lab 2021 programme supported by the Scottish Government.”

Isabel Davis, Executive Director at Screen Scotland said: “As people start to come back together over the summer it’s exciting that EIFF will offer audiences in Edinburgh, Scotland and across the UK a celebration of the communal experience of cinema.

“Filmhouse will once more play host but this year the festival will also animate the city, from its centre to its shore, as well as offer an accessible, digital programme will enable audiences unable to attend in person to experience the festival online.”

Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events at VisitScotland, said: “Events are a key part of the social and economic fabric of Scotland and following the challenges presented by the pandemic over the last year, it is wonderful to see Edinburgh International Film Festival has returned with a high-quality hybrid programme for film fans to enjoy in a way they feel most comfortable, whether that’s in person or online.

“EventScotland is delighted to be supporting this year’s festival, including both Film Fest in the City and Film Fest on the Forth in celebration of Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 20/21, and we look forward to hearing more of what’s on offer across the programme in the weeks to come.”

Cllr Donald Wilson, Culture and Communities Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “We’re proud to continue our support of the world’s oldest continuous film festival which explores new ideas in filmmaking and is known for heralding and debating the latest developments in cinema.

“It was much missed last year and I look forward to the return to the collective cinema experience with events and screenings planned for the Filmhouse and St Andrew Square as well as the online platform for audiences to enjoy from home. 

“Public safety will of course remain a priority, and we can all very much look forward to the full programme announcement in July.”

“Welcome back to live performance, welcome back to your Festival.”

The Edinburgh International Festival will welcome audiences back to live performance with temporary outdoor pavilions throughout the city this summer:

We are thrilled to announce our reimagined Festival for 2021, marking the return of live performance to Scotland’s capital city after over a year of silenced theatres and concert halls.

Taking place from 7 to 29 August, the 2021 International Festival will use bespoke, temporary outdoor pavilions in iconic, easily accessible spaces throughout the city to safely reunite our artists and audiences to rediscover the magic of live performance.

Our temporary outdoor pavilions, found at three locations including Edinburgh Park and the University of Edinburgh’s Old College Quad, will feature covered concert stages and socially distanced seating to create a beautiful setting for audiences to safely enjoy live music, opera and theatre once more.

The health and safety of the entire Festival community is at the heart of our plans for this year’s festival. That’s why we are working with the Scottish Government, City of Edinburgh Council and other relevant authorities to implement appropriate Covid safety measures.

These will include shorter performances with no intervals, physical distancing, regular cleaning and contactless ticketing.

We will publish full details of our security and safety measures in the coming months.

While we are looking forward to the prospect of bringing the Festival City to life once more, we appreciate that not everyone will be able to attend our performances in person this year.

To ensure that everyone can enjoy a slice of the magic, wherever they are in the world, we will release a selection of high-quality streamed performances, free of charge, during each week of the Festival.

Since Edinburgh’s summer festivals in 2020 were officially cancelled a year ago, we have received extraordinary support from so many people.

As our Festival Director Fergus Linehan says, “We are hugely grateful to the artists who have agreed to come on this journey with us, the stakeholders, donors, and sponsors who have stood by us through a tough year and our audiences who have cheered us along throughout. We look forward to sharing full details of the programme in early June.”

Full details of our 2021 programme, which spans opera, orchestral and chamber music, theatre and contemporary music, will be announced on Wednesday 2 June.

Priority booking for International Festival members opens on Tuesday 1 June before general booking opens on Friday 11 June.

Welcome Back

We are delighted to announce that in August 2021, the Edinburgh International Festival will return to live performance.

Connecting with others is more crucial now than ever. For that reason, we have continued to engage with communities across Edinburgh and further afield during the pandemic, bringing performances and opportunities to schools, families and socially isolated people. These projects are an integral part of the International Festival’s identity, and we will continue them and expand their scope as 2021 progresses.

We are proud of the streamed and broadcast works we have brought you over the past year. These projects have helped us experiment and evolve, and they will continue as a vital element in our work and engagement. But a Festival is at its heart a gathering, a celebration of community and shared purpose. The time is right to take the first careful steps back to live performance.

We are hugely grateful to the artists who are coming on this journey with us; to the stakeholders, donors and sponsors who have stood by us through a tough year; and to our audiences who have cheered us along throughout. We are excited by the prospect of seeing you all at the 2021 Edinburgh International Festival.

Welcome back to your Festival!

The International Festival team

New chapter for Edinburgh International Book Festival

The Edinburgh International Book Festival, which takes place this year from Saturday 14 to Monday 30 August, will do so in the beautiful indoor and open, grassy outdoor spaces of the University of Edinburgh’s Edinburgh College of Art on Lauriston Place.

Full programme details will be announced in June, but Book Festival fans can expect a range of live online author talks, workshops and readings as well as, if circumstances permit, some events for live socially-distanced audiences. 

This new strategic partnership with the University of Edinburgh gives us use of the ECA’s buildings and grounds in August. The University will operate catering and bar provisions if permitted by the Government’s Covid19 guidelines during the Festival.

EIBF Director, Nick Barley, explains this important move: “While we are now experiencing a full lockdown in Scotland which is challenging for so many people on so many levels, we very much hope that the combination of this, together with the ongoing vaccination programme, will bring the virus under control by August.

“While 2020 proved extremely challenging for the Book Festival it also opened up some extraordinarily exciting opportunities.  Building on the success of our online Book Festival we can now announce that we will be entering into a new strategic partnership with the University of Edinburgh that will enable us to inhabit this innovative space in 2021 with facilities to create events for both digital and, if circumstances permit, physical audiences.

“Covid19 has created a huge tectonic shift in the way that live events, ourselves included, can reach their audiences. With in-person ticket sales impossible to forecast this August, we simply can’t justify incurring the costs of the tents and infrastructure we’d normally put into Charlotte Square Gardens. It is highly probable that most events will take place online, and the need for broadcast studios is more likely than large venues for an audience.   

“In the grassy courtyard of Edinburgh College of Art we will, if rules allow, recreate the elements of the Book Festival that our audiences love – bookshops, cafes and open spaces in which to come together safely offering the ‘oasis of calm’ for which the Book Festival is renowned. The College offers excellent studio and theatre facilities for both online broadcasting and potential events with a socially distanced audience.

“We intend that this strategic partnership with the University will be a long-term arrangement, and the Book Festival will continue to occupy their spaces when a Covid-free Festival, with audiences able to enjoy live events in person, can be staged.

“However digital events will continue to be a key part of future Book Festivals, enabling us to reach truly global audiences as well as those closer to home who face barriers to attending the event. We are excited that our hybrid festivals of the future will engage with authors and audiences around the world in a more environmentally responsible way.”

It’s a new chapter for the Book Festival. Look out for more announcements in the coming months, with full programme details to be revealed at the end of June.

First candle lit at Scotland’s national Menorah

Today is the first day of the Holiday of Chanukah 2020.  

Chanukah in Edinburgh won’t look the same, as for the past 12 years Chabad of Edinburgh has organized the Scottish National Hanukkah Celebration which usually attracts hundreds of guests and dignitaries from all over Scotland. 

“The Menorah serves as a symbol of light and hope for us today amidst the darkness of the pandemic, as it did for generations before us,” said Rabbi Pinny Weinman, Director of Chabad of Edinburgh.

“The flames of the menorah shine out into the night, reminding us that even when confronted with much darkness, a tiny light can dispel it all. Another act of goodness and kindness, another act of light, can make all the difference.”

This year, the holiday has added significance as so many will be isolated at home on Hanukkah amid these difficult times.

As the Rebbe —Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory— would often teach, the menorah is a reminder that light can be brought to the darkest of times, and uniquely, at the core of the holiday’s observance is sharing the light with others who may not be experiencing it.

Video Message from First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon for the Holiday of Hanukkah 2020:

https://youtu.be/AS4Lhx6TLgc

The Citizen Network: A Revitalised City is Possible

There is no better time for the citizens of Edinburgh to pitch in and contribute to a Manifesto for the City Creating Our Manifesto for the City  The Citizen Network

Calls for no return to unequal and unjust normalcy following Covid-19 have come from many quarters, some of them quite unexpected, and there’s no doubt that many of the persistent problems of city life will be reassessed by those who govern us, whether that be Westminster, Holyrood or Edinburgh City Chambers.

But let’s not fool ourselves, what’s promised by politicians now may never transpire. Real change will not happen without direct action by citizens; for Edinburgh, Citizen’s Manifesto is the first step.

 

The need for citizens to hold politicians to account is already evident from reports of ‘stakeholder’ discussions pertaining to post-pandemic Edinburgh.

Consider first what Council leader Adam McVey had to say about the city’s Summer festivals: “By working together we can make sure that when our festivals return, they do so with even more of a focus on our people, place and environment.” So far so good but one is tempted to question the ‘even more’ – there has been scant attention to people place and environment in festival planning in recent years.

[“Edinburgh festivals face calls for overhaul before they return in 2021”]

In the same Scotsman article note that the city’s residents are absent when our cherished heritage is flagged up as needing not just preservation but enhancement by the festivals. Clearly, this pipe-dream does not extend to those who live in this ‘remarkable backdrop’.

But it’s the reaction of Essential Edinburgh that confirms that not all stakeholders are thinking about anything other than business as usual post Covid-19.

Roddy Smith, the Chief Executive, says “We need to reactivate the city, promote it strongly and widely and seek over the next couple of years to return to our numbers pre the virus.”

The same message can be deduced from the report from the meeting last week of the new tourism ‘oversight group’ for Edinburgh.

The group includes Edinburgh Tourism Action Group (ETAG), Edinburgh Airport, Festivals Edinburgh, Visit Scotland, Essential Edinburgh and the Chamber of Commerce – again not one resident has a seat at the table. Adam McVey reported that the group had reaffirmed the aims of Edinburgh’s new Tourism Strategy which was agreed pre-pandemic.

How can this be? Have we learned nothing these last few weeks?

So, the coronavirus will not miraculously change our world for the better. The citizens will have to insist on it, and the Manifesto for the City is an excellent starting place.

Let’s face it, change is difficult – most of us are stuck with at least one foot in the past and are in some way resigned to the way things are. To paraphrase a French philosopher, we are all ‘half accomplices’, demanding radical change while at the same time clinging to what we have become accustomed to.

But the city will change whether we like it or not, and citizens need to rise to the challenge and drive that change – now is the time to articulate our values and our aspirations; now is the time to really get beyond ourselves.

SEAN BRADLEY

Image credit: Astrid Jaekel