Come and enjoy a programme of short animations, films and documentaries created in Muirhouse & Pilton, followed by a visit and art workshop at Talbot Rice Gallery.
You can book for just the film screening or join us for the whole day (screening & gallery visit).
This is a free event but booking is advised.
Suitable for adults, families and young people over 9 years old (children under 9 must be accompanied by an adult).
Free bus tickets provided when travelling with us.
Snacks, treats and drinks provided.
This event, and the Art for Grown-Ups year round programme is supported by Creative Scotland www.creativescotland.com
What to expect:
This screening is the result of Art for Grown Ups recent Summer Project (18th – 25th July) and other creative workshops at North Edinburgh Arts. We will also show work by other local film makers.
The exhibition at Talbot Rice by Celine Conorelli explores transformation, labour, leisure, colour, play and design. You can learn more by clicking here. After visiting the exhibtion we’ll make a bit of our own art too.
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.
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 Recordtells 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 International Film Festival is delighted to announce that it will screen the World Premiere of Prince of Muck – set on the tiny inhabited island of Muck, off Scotland’s west coast, Cindy Jansen’s cinematic and haunting documentary explores how difficult it is to change the habits of a lifetime.
On Thursday 19 August the World Premiere at Edinburgh International Film Festival will simultaneously see the film screened in around 12 locations across Scotland from Edinburgh to Lerwick, Tiree to Tobermory and Inverness to Glasgow.
Lawrence MacEwen, who turns 80 years old this weekend, has farmed the Isle of Muck since the late 1960s. With his family he has created a rural retreat, perhaps out of time with the rapid transformations of the world around it. Revered for his eco-conscious stewardship in the 1970s, Lawrence now finds himself stubbornly battling to preserve his vision of the island for the next generation.
Dutch filmmaker Cindy Jansen captures a uniquely cinematic portrait of a place and a person haunted by the past and struggling to maintain their relevance for the future.
Prince of Muck is one of three films which will screen simultaneously at locations across Scotland as part of EIFF’s vision to play an active role in bringing cinema audiences back together across the country.
Partnering with independent cinemas and working in partnership with Film Hub Scotland, INDY Cinema Group and Regional Screen Scotland, fantastic films secured as part of EIFF will be shown in local cinemas including the opening film, the European Premiere of Pig starring Nicolas Cage at his melancholy best, and the Festival’s closing film, the UK Premiere of Here Today, directed and starring the disarmingly charming Billy Crystal and Tiffany Haddish.
Full details of screening locations will be released with the programme on 28 July but include Mareel Shetland, Tiree Isle of Tiree, Screen Machine Tobermory and Fort Augustus, Glasgow Film Theatre, Oban Phoenix, Macrobert Arts Centre Stirling, Eden Court Inverness, DCA Dundee, Heart of Hawick, Belmont Filmhouse Aberdeen, Birks Cinema Aberfeldy – and the home of EIFF, Filmhouse in Edinburgh.
Prince of Muck and the Scotland wide screenings of these three EIFF films is supported by the Scottish Government’s Festival’s EXPO Fund.
Filmmaker Cindy Jansen said:“I first went to the Isle of Muck with an open curiosity, but quickly became fascinated by the complex nature of the way in which everyone on the island is interdependent.
“It made me think deeply about my own society, here in Holland, but I knew that in Muck, I had the opportunity to study the fragile balance between tradition and modernity in an entire ‘micro society’.
“In Lawrence MacEwen, I found an engaging character, who is not only deeply embedded in the community, but who transcends the history of the island, as he struggles to accept that intergenerational change is profoundly challenging, but inevitable.
“It is wonderful that the film will premiere at EIFF in Scotland, close to its home ground. I feel it is a great compliment to the people in the film and the team who made it happen, in Scotland and here in The Netherlands.”
Rohan Crickmar, Documentary Programme Consultant for EIFF said: “Quite simply it is a celebration of the Scottish landscape and its people that focuses on the need to renew and evolve heritage and tradition to preserve a sense of community.
“It will allow you to see a part of Scotland rarely documented, and in a strikingly different way which highlights cultural commonalities across Europe’s northlands.”
Ken Hay, CEO of EIFF said: “EIFF is delighted to be working with partner venues across Scotland in our celebration of the communal cinema experience with the simultaneous screening of Prince of Muck, along with our opening film, Pig and our closing film, Here Today.
“These will be special moments for the festival and the filmmakers, but most importantly for audiences across the country. Huge thanks to the Scottish Government and the Festivals Expo Fund for supporting this initiative.”
Culture Secretary Angus Robertson said: “The Edinburgh International Film Festival excels in showcasing Scotland, and this year is no exception.
“The World Premiere of Scottish-made documentary Prince of Muck – one of three films to be simultaneously screened in locations across Scotland during the festival – will bring audiences back together to see our nation through different eyes, celebrating its landscapes, its people and the importance of community.
“I am pleased that £50,000 of funding from the Scottish Government’s Festivals Expo Fund has contributed to the Edinburgh International Film Festival’s innovative development of this communal cinema experience, so that these films can be enjoyed nationwide.”
Screen Scotland’s Mark Thomas said: “This beautifully cinematic portrait of an island and a family in transition is the result of a strong European co-production between Scotland-based production company Faction North and Dutch company De Productie, coming together to realise director Cindy Jansen’s vision.
“Thanks to the Festival’s work with venues and cinemas, it’s fantastic that audiences across Scotland will have the opportunity to see the film simultaneously this summer.”
Prince of Muck was supported by The National Lottery and the Scottish Government through Screen Scotland’s Film Development and Production Fund.
The Edinburgh and Lothians Film Competition is an opportunity for your students to showcase their talent at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in June 2019!
Open to all City of Edinburgh council & Lothians schools, come along to the teachers’ information sessions tomorrow (Thursday 31st January) at the Filmhouse to find out more about the Edinburgh and Lothians Film Competition.
Screen Education Edinburgh is hosting a screening event to showcase films made by our young people on their BFI Film Academy, Cashback for Creativity, Princes Trust: Get Started with Media and SEE It Make It (Into Film) programmes.
This event will take place on Saturday 22 October at The Filmhouse.
Edinburgh College Granton Campus TV students will be showcasing their talents at a screening at Edinburgh Filmhouse on Wednesday at 6pm. Telford’s Film and TV course has produced some fine creative talent over the years – take the opportunity to view the next generation!
