EIFF announces programme

Henry Pettigrew and Lorn Macdonald in The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Photo: Courtesy of EIFF

Edinburgh International Film Festival has announced its line-up this year will feature five world premiere features, including The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde, documentary Choose Irvine Welsh and Welsh-set romantic drama Chuck Chuck Baby.

The slate of 24 films - which is abbreviated due to the event being hosted by the International Festival after the collapse of EIFF's parent organisation The Centre for the Moving Image last year - also features the already announced premiere of Silent Roar as the opening night film and Scottish thriller Kill.

Afire Photo: Courtesy of Sideshow and Janus Films

Hope Dickson Leach's Jekyll and Hyde has been created as a live hybrid performance with the National Theatre of Scotland. Ian Jefferies' Choose Irvine Welsh looks at the career of the Trainspotting author, while Janis Pugh's Chuck Chuck Baby offers a modern love story set against the backdrop of a chicken packaging factory. Kill, directed by Rodger Griffiths, recounts a hunting trip that turns deadly.

Among the other highlights of the programme are Sundance favourite Past Lives, directed by Celine Song, Kelly Reichardt's Showing Up and Berlin Silver Bear winner Afire, directed by Christian Petzold.

Kate Taylor at the EIFF programme launch Photo: Richard Mowe

In addition to new films, five retrospective screenings will be held, including Shane Meadows' Dead Man's Shoes and a focus on "rebellious voices in American Indie Cinema" featuring Drylongso, Life Is Cheap... But Toilet Paper Is Expensive, Tokyo Pop and Variety.

There will also be five short film programmes, including five newly commissioned short docs in the ever-reliable Bridging The Gap programme.

The festival will also launch The Lynda Myles project, a discussion event on the legacy of producer and ex-director of the EIFF’s contribution to film culture, with a work-in-progress screening of The Lynda Myles Project: A Manifesto, directed by Susan Kemp.

Programme director Kate Taylor said: “With this year’s vivid film selection the EIFF programme team has favoured the bold, drawn to filmmakers with searching perspectives and style to burn. Designed for an eclectic spectrum of film fans, and defined by a love of independent cinema, this compact programme shines a light on new talent, and offers a smashing six-day journey for the EIFF’s passionate audiences.”

With the loss of Filmhouse to the city, the films will screen in partnership with Vue Omni Centre and Everyman Edinburgh.

Read more about the festival line-up and read our early coverage here.

Kill Photo: Courtesy of EIFF