Edinburgh International Film Festival

Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) builds its programme around premieres: every new film it presents is a World, International or UK Premiere, and its two main competitions are decided by audience vote. The Sean Connery Prize for Feature Filmmaking Excellence (£50,000) and the Thelma Schoonmaker Prize for Short Filmmaking Excellence (£15,000) are open to films of any genre having their world premiere at the festival; EIFF counts films of 30 minutes or less as shorts. The festival is a qualifying festival for the British Independent Film Awards.

The festival dates back to 1947, when it began as the International Festival of Documentary Films, and it describes itself as the world’s oldest continually running film festival. In 2024 it relaunched as a new charitable organisation with a new board. EIFF takes place in August alongside the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the city’s other summer festivals, with screenings across Edinburgh cinemas and an industry programme of talks and networking events for film professionals.