August Film Events: 2010

Whilst the many festivals taking place in Edinburgh this month might not be focused on film there are still a variety of events which will appeal to cinephiles. An exciting new addition to this year’s Fringe Festival is CineFringe Film Festival 2010 – an open entry short film festival offering an alternative to large scale film festivals. It takes place 11-28 August at the Symposium Hall in Edinburgh and consists of screenings, workshops and free interactive film events.

As part of the Edinburgh International Festival there are two performances by Chilean theatre company Teatro Cinema who combine cinema and theatre to startling effect. Sin Sangre (28 Aug–3 Sep) is an adaptation of a novella by Italian author and playwright Alessandro Baricco. It’s dark and intense and recalls 1960s B-movie thrillers. The Man Who Fed Butterflies (29 Aug–4 Sept) is a poetic performance about an old man who is driven to perform a ritual by an extinct tribe to feed the butterflies on their annual migration. The performance combines wide-screen projection and traditional theatre methods to create a unique event which is a feast for the senses.  

The Cameo is offering audiences a chance to experience Impossible Things Before Breakfast on 23 August – a live satellite broadcast of five specially commissioned plays by such people as Enda Walsh and Marina Carr, two acclaimed Irish playwrights. This unique opportunity to watch theatre at the cinema is included as part of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Outside of the festival in Glasgow at the CCA on 12 August there is a chance to see Powell and Pressburger's classic, I Know Where I'm Going, a film about a woman's journey of self-discovery set in the Hebrides. Powell and Pressburger are just two of the filmmakers that are being honoured in the CCA's new film strand, Distant Voices, which will be celebrating iconic British filmmakers and their innovative works, keep your eye on upcoming additions.

Finally, head to the GFT each Sunday of the month to enjoy the films chosen by the cinema's customers and staff via Facebook. Summer Sundays includes Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums, a cult comedy about a dysfunctional family boasting an enviable cast (Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston and Bill Murray to name a few) on 8 August, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet's Amelie on 22 August: perfect Sunday viewing.