Film festival chief to stay in his role

FILM festival organisers have revealed that artistic director Chris Fujiwara will remain in the post for at least another three years.

Mr Fujiwara was hailed after this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival, which was declared a huge success with more than 40,000 people flocking to screenings over 12 days.

He said: “Working on this year’s EIFF has been one of the most challenging and fulfilling experiences of my career.

“The interest and enthusiasm of the audience and the dedication and professionalism of the staff and volunteers have transformed my view of the importance cinema can hold in people’s lives.

“I’m deeply grateful to the board for their confidence in me and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to expand our relationships with our audiences and with international filmmakers, distributors and sales agents. I’m very excited about working to shape the future of EIFF.”

The 2012 EIFF was Mr Fujiwara’s first as artistic director, and featured an international programme with 120 new feature films. EIFF chair Leslie Hills said: “We are utterly delighted that he has accepted our offer to build on this very promising first edition.”