Taking place from 31st May to 2nd June across the Scottish Storytelling Centre and The French Institute, Edinburgh International University Film Festival (EIUFF) is a pioneering initiative to kickstart students’ film careers and celebrate the global community of student filmmakers. The festival will unite and share the work of student filmmakers through student film screenings, workshops, ceremonies, and networking events. At the press night in anticipation of the festival’s launch, the directorial team told all about their project, its whirlwind success, and what is to come.
The team made their aim very clear: to bridge the gap between student film and the daunting and notoriously hard break into the film industry.
What started as a vague idea from Mafalda Lorijn, the festival director, soon snowballed into an international festival propelling student filmmakers into the spotlight and one of the first student-oriented film festivals. With the idea emerging in 2023 after Lorijn, who makes films herself, noticed a lack of platforms available to celebrate and promote student film, it only took two years for the vision of an international student film festival to be conceptualised. What began as a festival limited to the University of Edinburgh soon involved all Edinburgh universities, before skyrocketing to involve UK and even international filmmakers. For such a newly launched program, the festival crossing international waters is a testament to the dedication and motivation of the team. With Edinburgh currently becoming an epicentre for film and global film festivals, the festival team hope that their student-oriented festival will kickstart careers for young filmmakers.
The team made their aim very clear: to bridge the gap between student film and the daunting and notoriously hard to break into film industry. With the entire team being filmmakers themselves, they are well aware of the barriers facing student filmmakers, whether it be budgeting constraints or simply not being taken seriously. The team aims to provide a stepping stone for students entering the film industry by treating student films professionally. Students will benefit from networking opportunities, and having their films screened publicly and judged by industry professionals (among which are seven BAFTA winners!); the support of industry professionals shows the speed at which the festival has been embraced by the wider film industry. The judges may be in control of main category winners, but the audience award leaves the power with the public to decide which shortlisted film takes the popular vote.
For a global film festival centred around nurturing and promoting student talent, accessibility is key.
Rather than traditional film award categories, the festival awards are divided into five thematic groups ranging from psychological to fantasy to magical realism. “Tales of Becoming” centres around coming-of-age stories. “Inheritance of the Heart” and “The Shape Love Takes” explore love in all its forms, with the former focusing on longing, memory and family, and the latter on broader forms of love. “States of Mind” groups introspective films delving into the human psyche, whereas “Fantastical Realities” blurs boundaries of reality and imagination. The team also have an “Out of Competition” category showcasing some of their own films.
For a global film festival centred around nurturing and promoting student talent, accessibility is key. The team take pride in their partnership with the Scottish Youth Film Foundation, under which 25 percent of ticket earnings will be donated to support young Scottish filmmakers. Being student filmmakers themselves, they know all too well financial constraints involved with student film. To ensure that no student was unable to submit their film due to financial barriers, the team distributed discount codes for submission fees. 1/4 of the submissions were free of charge for filmmakers who could not fund their submission fee. With partnerships with other festivals such as the Amsterdam Student Film Festival, the team’s goals to celebrate and publicise student film are not limited the Edinburgh student film scene.
Mark your calendars for the official launch of EIUFF at the end of May, where the upcoming talent of young filmmakers can be seen on the big screen.
Image credits to Livvie Wharmby