This stylish screening room is located in the heart of the National Gallery and has comfortable tiered seating, full audio-visual support onsite and is only five minutes walk from Waverley train station.

An aimless, former tennis champion living a life of casual work and hedonism on the island of Fuerteventura finds himself drawn into a web of mystery involving a young, troubled family. Enigmatic and beautifully shot, this is a taut, mysterious and Highsmith-esque existential thriller from acclaimed director Jan-Ole Gerster (Oh Boy!, EIFF 2013). Unclassified: 18+

EIFF: Islands

Ángela is overjoyed upon learning she is pregnant. The question of whether her daughter will inherit her deafness impacts her and everyone around her. A tender and emotionally intelligent drama about love and resilience in a challenging world. Unclassified: 15+. Screens with Bumblebee (Abellón) (Spain, 19min).

EIFF: Deaf/Bumblebee

When an enigmatic artist (Jennifer Ehle) invites a young bartender to pose for her, a strange, confusing relationship develops that will change both women forever. An elegant, subtle drama with a chilly edge, this is a restrained and emotionally intelligent exploration of selfish desires, hidden motivations and what it takes to know yourself. Unclassified: 15+.

EIFF: In Transit

Oddball staff, wacky clientele and even ageing Hollywood idols cross paths at a small-town US cinema on the day of its closure in this darkly hilarious and beautifully shot love letter to cinema and cinemagoing. Unclassified: 15+.

EIFF: Concessions

A Yugoslav refugee rebuilds his life in Bristol, counselling by day and playing in a Balkan band by night. As shadows from his past return, he fights to protect the fragile bond with his daughter in this profoundly moving debut feature. Unclassified: 15+. Screens with Truckload (UK, 19mins).

EIFF: Surviving Earth/Truckload

A young woman embarks on a road trip to find her estranged father, aided by a charismatic stranger on the way. A film brimming with character and heart, this is a vivid and visually striking queer road movie that has a strong message of self-empowerment at its core. Unclassified: 15+.

EIFF: Low Rider

A mild-mannered Iranian mortician in Canada forms an unexpected bond with a dissident singer in exile in this unpredictable and gripping character study from director Abdolreza Kahani (A Shrine, EIFF 2024 Competition). Unclassified: 15+.

EIFF: Mortician

An ostracised neuroscientist is drawn out of hiding by an activist group of idealistic young scientists fascinated by his previously discredited theories. An offbeat, intriguing exploration of idol worship, consumerism and nonconformity, this mysterious film is dark, unpredictable and humorous in equal measure. Unclassified: 15+.

EIFF: Novak

A fishing village on the Welsh coast is the breathtakingly atmospheric setting for this rough and tender love story about a married mussel farmer who falls in love with a handsome newcomer. Unclassified: 18+.

EIFF: On The Sea

An affecting, gorgeously crafted documentary about the remaining people in Malmberget in north Sweden, a small town collapsing into the mines beneath it. As residents reflect on the once vibrant community, the town itself is slowly dismantled around them. Haunting, reflective and beautifully shot, this is pure cinema. Unclassified: Parental Guidance. 

EIFF: Once You Shall Be One Of Those Who Lived Long Ago

Cult director Ben Wheatley (Kill List, Sightseers) returns to his indie roots with this bizarre and hilarious sci-fi nightmare fusing head scrambling multiverses, brilliantly unhinged lo-fi special effects, and a conspiracy of global proportions that might mean the end of the world as we know it. Unclassified: 15+

EIFF: Bulk

Ondine Viñao’s visually stunning, punkish and remarkably assured debut is a modern retelling of an Aesop fable, in which two women from different worlds collide over one night at a debauched party and are faced with a bizarre offer from a charismatic stranger. Unclassified: 18+.

EIFF: Two Neighbors

A selection of the finest new short films from across the world, ranging from biting realism to surreal satire. Board games, Thanksgiving dinners and a dictator’s dog all play a part in this year’s short film competition, which explores the power and danger of relationships with lovers, friends and pets. Competing for a £15,000 prize named in honour of accclaimed editor Thelma Schoonmaker, this is a rich collection of World Premieres from a plethora of remarkable filmmaking talent. Unclassified: 18+.

EIFF: Competition Shorts

Two disillusioned teenage girls embark on a dangerous and life-changing journey to the Syrian border from the UK, in this powerfully evocative portrait of friendship, girlhood, and radicalisation from director and playwright Nadia Fall. Unclassified: 15+

EIFF: Brides

17-year-old Christy has been kicked out of his latest foster home in Cork and finds himself living with his half-brother Shane. As the past catches up with him, Christy must decide which path will serve him best in this beautifully drawn and warmly funny portrait of young people, community and resilience in the face of hardship. Unclassified: 15+

EIFF: Christy

A lonely pensioner (Blethyn) strikes up an unlikely friendship with her troubled neighbour (Riseborough) in Paul Andrew Williams’ beautifully observed and tautly constructed thriller of suburban discontent and brooding violence. Unclassified: 18+

EIFF: Dragonfly

Three adult children and their mother reunite after the death of their abusive father and engage in a strange, cruel competition that shaped their childhood. As the games play out, hidden truths emerge. A bold, original and blackly comic satire that fearlessly skewers social constructs, the nuclear family and toxic masculinity. Unclassified: 15+.

EIFF: Best Boy

A queer camboy agrees to spend the night with a mysterious stranger in this utterly gripping, unflinching and unexpectedly moving thriller exploring taboo desires and the horrible power of the past. Unclassified: 18+.

EIFF: Blue Film

In this wrenching and timely documentary, director Sepideh Farsi shares disarmingly frank and intimate video calls with young Palestinian photojournalist Fatma Hassona who was witness to the horrors unfolding in Gaza on the ground before she was killed in an Israeli airstrike. Unclassified: 15+

EIFF: Put Your Soul On Your Hand and Walk

After a tragic loss, a pregnant woman’s affair with a charismatic singer spirals into mystery and danger in this gripping erotic thriller that explores grief, obsession and the haunting power of a fleeting, intense connection. Introduced by producer, screenwriter and former EIFF Director Lynda Myles. Unclassified: 15+.

EIFF: Lynda Myles Celebrates: After This Death

Ordered to lie low in a remote countryside safe house, a crew of London criminals begin to turn on one another. Eddie Marsan and Sam Claflin lead a brooding, stylish thriller exploring control, moral reckoning and inevitable violence. Unclassified: 18+

EIFF: All The Devils Are Here

Sixteen-year-old Lucia joins a Catholic girls’ choir and befriends older AnaMaria, but her attraction to a restoration worker during a choir getaway will strain the friendship and challenge her beliefs in this striking coming-of-age debut. Unclassified: 18+

EIFF: Little Trouble Girls

An experimental reflection on the changeable and complex nature of memory through the lens of neurodivergence. This is the latest unmissable project from filmmaker Andrew Kötting, led by the worldview of his daughter, Eden. Unclassified: Suitable for all. 

EIFF: The Memory Blocks

EIFF is delighted to partner with Scottish Documentary Institute to present the short documentary films created through the Bridging the Gap training programme. Inner forces and outside influences shape this collection of short films which offer surprising, intimate and poetic insights of contemporary Scotland. Unclassified: 15+.

EIFF: Bridging the Gap Shorts

From the microscopic to the planetary, this programme traces the invisible threads between nature, identity and power, exploring bodies, systems and imagined futures, and blending poetic vision with political urgency. Unclassified: 18+.

EIFF @ National Galleries of Scotland

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