#EIFF2021: what we watching?!

​By Adam Ray Palmer
 
For the second time this year, Cineroom is heading back up over the border to Scotland visiting the 2021 edition of the Edinburgh International Film Festival for the first time.
 
Festivals are our bread and butter, and we can’t wait to experience a new one for Cineroom. As we gear up for the autumn releases, EIFF couldn’t come at a better time!
 
Here’s s selection of what’s coming up over the course of the festival for us…

THE BETA TEST
What the festival says:
Shortly before his wedding, ruthless talent agent Jordan receives a mysterious envelope offering sex with a stranger in a hotel room. No. Strings. Attached. Initially amused, then intrigued, he becomes obsessed by the idea of a secret erotic adventure and impulsively accepts. But will he regret his choices when his meticulous, superficial world threatens to collapse under the weight of his burgeoning lies?

THE BRIGHT SIDE
What the festival says:
Cynical stand-up, Kate, has lost her way, but she gains friends and a new perspective on life, when she goes through cancer treatment with an unlikely band of companions. Ruth Meehan’s comedy drama is a funny and poignant debut feature. The director draws on the personal experience of herself and her crew, to deliver a believable story of everyday women - thrown together in the worst circumstances, finding the best in themselves and each other.

THE JUSTICE OF BUNNY KING
What the festival says:
Bunny King is a “homeless squeegee bandit, but sexy,” as described by lead actress Essie Davis (The Babadook) in a recent interview. Bunny is a mother of two, battling the system to reunite with her young daughter Shannon and teenage son Reuben. A broader family confrontation leads her to take her niece Tonyah (Jojo Rabbit’s Thomasin McKenzie) under her wing. With the world against them, Bunny’s fight with social services has just begun. A powerful drama about a single mother with a troubled past aiming for a brighter future, recently presented at the Tribeca and Sydney Film Festivals.

EUROPA
What the festival says:
Kamal played by British-Libyan Adam Ali (Manchester-based actor seen in Apple TV+’s Little America) is an Iraqi young man migrate into Europe on foot. Merciless wilderness and human corruption combine to discourage him from crossing the dangerous border between Turkey and Bulgaria. Captured by a group of Bulgarian vigilantes calling themselves Migrant Hunters, Kamal manages to escape and run for his life but the next encounter may be doom or salvation. Europa had its world premiere in the Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes this year.

The Edinburgh International Film Festival kicks off next week from 18th – 25th August 2021. Stay tuned to Cineroom for all the latest!