Edinburgh Film Festival & Filmhouse Cinema Owner Files For Administration

deadline.com:

The trustees in charge of the Centre for the Moving Image (CMI), the charity which runs the Edinburgh International Film Festival, Filmhouse Cinema in Edinburgh, and Belmont Filmhouse in Aberdeen, have appointed administrators.

The Edinburgh Film Festival, Filmhouse Cinema, and Belmont Filmhouse will all cease trading immediately. A statement from the CMI said a “perfect storm” of rising costs and falling admissions numbers due to the pandemic has been exacerbated by the current cost of living crisis. “The combination and scale of these challenges is unprecedented and means that there was no option but to take immediate action,” the statement said.

Administrators will work with Creative Scotland, the City of Edinburgh Council, and Aberdeen City Council to assess options for the future of the individual elements of the charity’s work and supporting staff through the process.

It is expected that staff members at all three sites will be made redundant. “We would like to put on record our immense gratitude to the entire staff team whose passion for film as an artform and for the audiences and communities we work with and serve has remained undented by the challenges of recent years.