Paul Ridd

Things were looking dicy for Britain’s longest-running film fest when its organiser went into administration in 2022. But after a patch that was rockier than Arthur’s Seat, Edinburgh International Film Festival is back and looking more dynamic than ever for summer 2024. There’s a new leadership team and plenty of fresh energy to the UK’s oldest film fest as it kicks off on August 15. Tickets are on sale now for a programme with plenty to draw in Edinburgh movie lovers and film fans from further afield.  ‘This year’s festival has really strong competition films and world premieres,’ says festival director Paul Ridd, ‘but we're also screening films in non-traditional spaces. So we’ve got The Cameo, which has screened films at the festival for years and years, but also three pop-up spaces: Summerhall, 50 George Square and digital arts venue Inspace. It’s going to create the buzz and atmosphere of a Fringe show.’ But with a line-up encompassing dozens of feature films, docs and shorts, it’s handy to have a steer on what to see and which tickets to buy (priced between £8 and £14, with some ‘pay what you can’ options). To help, we asked Ridd to single out a few favourites from the line-up. RECOMMENDED: 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Your ultimate guide to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2024. 📽️ This year’s London Film Festival opener is a hometown gem.