running film festival

We look forward to another stellar year of the world's longest continually running film festival, which takes place in Edinburgh from 17th - 28th June.

The Edinburgh International Film Festival returns to its new slot in June, away from the meleé of the International Festival and Fringe events which follow in August. In its 63rd incarnation, EIFF remains one of the best places to view independent cinema from original voices, unencumbered by the obsession for recognised 'auteurs' which afflicts some of the better known European festivals. It's also undoubtedly the best festival to catch British films and this year's programme sees a host of new releases from established UK talent and rising stars. Alongside the feature films there will also be a comprehensive selection of some of the most exciting recent shorts and documentaries, and a welcome new addition is the Cinematic TV strand, an overdue appreciation of the extraordinary television now being produced in the US and UK, which will offer the chance to see how well it works on the big screen.

Film Network will also be supporting the Trailblazers and Directors' Lab initiatives from the UKFC and Skillset, which will be operating during the festival, as well as the annual McLaren Animation Awards. There will also be a unmissable restrospective of the work of B-Movie maestro Roger Corman, for those who tire of the festival's loftier aspirations.

See below for more details about some of the highlights to look out for, and return to Film Network after the festival has finished for more interviews and articles from the event itself.

Le Donk

Shane Meadows is a self-declared big fan of Edinburgh Film Festival, where his previous film Somers Town received its UK premiere in 2008. His latest project is getting its World Premiere this time around, concerning an ageing but ambitious roadie called Le Donk (Paddy Considine) who attempts to make a star out of Nottingham's latest rap prodigy, Scorz-Ayz-Ee.