Glimmer of hope

The news that Creative Scotland has secured the rights to Edinburgh International Film Festival and allocated nearly £100,000 towards its revival represents more than a glimmer of hope, given how bleak the situation previously appeared.

However, question marks still remain over the future of the Filmhouse, which hosted the festival, its counterpart in Aberdeen, the Belmont Filmhouse, and more than 100 people who lost their jobs.

A bid to raise £2 million to save the Edinburgh cinema through the Crowdfunder website has so far raised just over £145,000. The organisers wrote that they were now hoping to put together a “club deal”, combining the donations with “several major donors” able to provide more than £200,0000. One problem for them is that time is running out, with a closing date for offers set for Wednesday next week.

These are hard times, but allowing such a jewel in Edinburgh’s cultural crown to fall could mean our current troubles, which will surely pass, continue to cause significant damage far into the future. We hope Scotland’s creative sector, all those who value what it does, and the government will rally round the Film Festival and both Filmhouses in their hour of need. If the current glimmers of hope are extinguished, bringing these valuable institutions back to life may prove a difficult task.