Tag: independent cinema

Edinburgh International Film Festival 2023 draws to a close with the flame of independent cinema burning bright

  • This year’s Festival included 94 events in total
  • 75 cinema screenings, 10 outdoor screenings and 5 discussion events
  • 3 talent development events, 2 online film programmes and a film quiz
  • A total in-person attendance of 10,277
  • 71% of cinema screenings sold out with an overall cinema occupancy of 82%

Hosted by Edinburgh International Festival, Edinburgh International Film Festival returned this year as a six-day festival from 18 – 23 August with a bold and tightly curated programme of 24 new feature films, 5 retrospective titles, 5 short film programmes alongside an outdoor screening weekend at Old College Quad at The University of Edinburgh which included 7 further features.

Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) set out this year to keep the flame of independent cinema burning bright in the city and audiences and filmmakers have responded with love, support and attendance.

With a total of 75 cinema screenings across partnering venues Vue Edinburgh Omni Centre and Everyman Edinburgh, 71% of cinema screenings sold out with an overall cinema occupancy of 82%.

While a weekend of outdoor screenings saw a variety of audiences attend the dreamy surroundings of the Old College Quad at The University of Edinburgh for a mix of new film previews, family-friendly titles, artists’ films and a live soundtracks to a classic.

With a compact programme of films, this EIFF edition concentrated on depth of engagement, with discussion events such as Encounters panels mixing guest filmmakers with writers, artists and performers, a Sunday Salon conversation between Ira Sachs and Brandon Taylor, and the launch of The Lynda Myles Project, providing audiences with space to be a part of an ongoing conversation that places dialogue at the centre of the Festival and positions cinema in conversation with other artforms.

Feedback from industry guests attending the Festival has involved praise for EIFF as a place to gather, share ideas and champion the spirit of independent cinema with well-attended events such as Talent Assemble, delivered in partnership with BBC Film, BBC Scotland and MG Alba, showing that EIFF continues to be a cherished place at the forefront of building filmmaking relationships.

While a collaboration with Curate-It and a series of Critical Writing Commissions have enabled the Festival to support two emerging film curators and nine writers based in Scotland, broadening the voices and perspectives engaging with the Festival.

The Festival kicked off on 18 August with Silent Roar, a film that places Scottish culture at the heart of a wave of new independent filmmaking whilst Closing Night film Fremont capped off an international selection that included work from celebrated arthouse directors Kelly Reichardt, Ira Sachs, Cauleen Smith, and Christian Petzold, and showcased work from Argentina, Brazil, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, South Korea, and the United States.

Every film screening was introduced by a member of the programme team, and BSL interpretation was offered at all screenings that were presented with Descriptive Subtitles. The Festival welcomed over 75 guests to present their films.

Filmmakers and actors attending the festival included: Johnny Barrington, Theo Barrowclough, Louise Brealey, Hope Dickson Leach, Jeanie Finlay, Sam H. Freeman, Ella Glendining, Bette Gordon, Wendy Griffin, Rodger Griffiths, David Hayman, Mark Herbert, Paul Higgins, Ella Lily Hyland, Babak Jalali, Ian Jefferies, Fran Rubel Kuzui, Huw Lemmey, Karoline Lyngbye, Lorn Macdonald, Devashish Makhija, Louis McCartney, Shane Meadows, Kevin Pickering, Ng Choon Ping, Julia Parks, Henry Pettigrew, Daniel Portman, Janis Pugh, Charlotte Regan, Calum Ross, Ira Sachs, Annabel Scholey, Thomas Schubert, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Brian Vernel, Irvine Welsh, Chris Young, and Paris Zarcilla.

TONIGHT:

https://tickets.edfringe.com/wha…/nightpiece-film-festival

Kate Taylor, Programme Director for Edinburgh International Film Festival said:  “This year’s film festival has shown that there is an unquenchable appetite in this city for independent and international cinema.

“We have been so delighted and moved by the conversations that have taken place between filmmakers and audiences, and the warmth with which people have engaged with the programme.

“I am beyond proud to have worked alongside the EIFF team who, since March, have worked with great passion and speed to deliver something special, and we all hope that the event’s success offers a beacon for a brighter future for EIFF and film culture in the city.”

EIFF is supported by Screen Scotland, and enhanced engagement activities are supported by the Scottish Government’s Festivals Expo Fund alongside the PLaCE Programme (a partnership between the Scottish Government, City of Edinburgh Council and the Edinburgh Festivals).

#EdFilmFest

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Emergency funding for culture

Small movie theater

Creative Scotland has published details of the Independent Cinema Recovery and Resilience Fund, the first of five emergency funds to be delivered over the coming weeks. 

The Independent Cinema Recovery and Resilience Fund is a £3.5million fund from the Scottish Government. The aim of the Fund is to help secure the survival of Scotland’s independent cinemas, enabling them to re-establish and adjust their business models in response to Covid-19.

The fund addresses the critical financial need faced by Scotland’s independent cinemas to enable them to return to full-time operation, significantly reducing the risk of wide-spread redundancies and closure of vital community assets.  

Guidelines for applying to the Fund have now been published ahead opening for applications on Monday 14 September.  

Sambrooke Scott, Head of Audience Development at Screen Scotland said: “We very much welcome the First Minister’s recent announcement of £31.5m in emergency funding for culture in Scotland and are pleased, as part of that, to be able to quickly offer £3.5m of that funding to support Scotland’s independent cinemas.  

“These cinemas not only present a broad range of high-quality creative programming to a varied audience, but they also serve as community hubs in geographically diverse parts of Scotland, including some of our more remote places.  

“This fund will offer a vital lifeline to those independent cinemas which have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, helping them to return to full-time operation and protect jobs.” 

The Independent Cinema Recovery and Resilience Fund is the first of five new emergency funds to be delivered by Creative Scotland over the coming weeks as follows: 

  • The £15m Culture Organisations and Venues Recovery Fund will support organisations that provide opportunities for cultural engagement and who have been unable to trade due to the impact of Covid-19. It includes both organisations who provide opportunities for audience engagement (such as galleries, performing arts spaces, commercial theatres, comedy clubs and nightclubs) as well as those that enable and deliver cultural activity (such as production facilities, music and dance companies). Eligibility criteria and guidelines for applying are currently in development and will be published on Thursday 10 September. The fund will open for applications on Thursday 17 September and awards will be made by the first week in November.  
  • The £5m Creative Freelancer Hardship Fund will address the current financial hardship being felt by creative freelancers who normally work in the culture sector, but whose work has been impacted by Covid-19. We are currently working to appoint partners to ensure a wide spread of coverage of this fund and we anticipate opening for applications from early October. 
  • The £5m Sustaining Creative Practice Fund will support artists to continue developing new creative work that will make a significant contribution to Scotland’s recovery from COVID-19. This includes £1.5 million for the Culture Collective programme, mentioned in the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government, supporting organisations employing freelance artists to work in and with communities across Scotland. The remaining £3.5m will be added to Creative Scotland’s existing open fund which is open for applications from individuals now.  
  • The £3m Youth Arts Fund will ensure creative opportunities for children and young people continue to exist across Scotland despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The fund will include targeted and open funding to youth music and wider youth arts organisations, a scheme to devolve grants locally to artists who work with young people and small grants delivered directly to young people to support them fulfil their creative ambitions. 

Details of all funds will be published on the Creative Scotland website and publicised through media and social media communications.