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Lorenzo Sportiello's debut feature Index Zero is a gritty apocalyptic drama set in an unspecified part of Europe in 2035, following the struggle of two people searching for safety amidst an ecological crisis which has resulted in a divide between those whose 'index' (or use value) is considered sustainable (or profitable), and the outcasts who don't make the grade. The film is intense and very well realised in its visual design, but fails to develop its central characters, undermining the overall impact of the narrative. Nevertheless, for Pa fans who like an original story this is certainly one to check out.

We meet beleaguered couple, Kurt (Simon Merrells) and Eve (Ana Ularu) as they stumble through a vast wasteland, surviving harsh conditions through eating carrion, drinking [Continued ...]...

Smart, thoughtful science fiction that’s about ideas, not spectacle, with an extra kick of cautionary-tale warning in light of current events. I’m “biast” (pro): big science fiction fan

I’m “biast” (con): nothing

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

In the near future, a man (Simon Merells: The Wolfman) and a woman (Ana Ularu: Serena) struggle to survive as they travel across a gray wasteland denuded of green but littered with empty, crumbling buildings. A strange airplane roars overhead, so we know we — and they — are not beyond the end of civilization… and then they come to a walled town, where grubby, hard-faced people trade broken-down electronics (or their bodies) and the only well-fed few are men in riot gear with a corporate logo for “Biosource” across their backs. And we slowly begin to understand, as the couple trade their last valuable possessions — gold,...

Ewan McGregor, Jane Seymour, Malcolm McDowell and Hong Kong director Johnnie To among the guests set to attend the festival.Scroll down for competition titles

The line-up for the 69th Edinburgh International Film Festival (Eiff) has been unveiled this morning by new artistic director Mark Adams.

This year’s Eiff (June 17-28) will comprise 164 features from 36 countries, including 24 world premieres, eight international premieres, 16 European premieres and 84 UK premieres.

Highlights including the UK premiere of Asif Kapadia’s documentary Amy, about the life of singer Amy Winehouse; the latest Disney-Pixar animation Inside Out; Arnold Schwarzenegger in zombie drama Maggie; comedy The D-Train, starring Jack Black and James Marsden; and a biopic of The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson, Love & Mercy, in which John Cusack and Paul Dano play different aged versions of the musician.

Classic Screenings will include a rare outing for Noel Marshall’s Roar, a cult 1981 big cat movie.

Star power

This year’s Eiff will present...

"Humanist science fiction." That's how director Lorenzo Sportiello refers to his feature film debut Index Zero which, from the trailers, looks an awful lot like a post apocalyptic survival story.

The year is 2035 and the world has suffered an economic crisis. Europe has collapsed and re-emerged as the United Sates of Europe. Kurt and Eva (Simon Merrells and Ana Ularu respectively) are about to have a baby and to provide that child with a better life, they try to immigrate into the richer world where their child can have a better life except that on route, they are caught and sent to the Welcome Center where their troubles really get out of hand as Eva, by being pregnant, is not considered "sustainable" and therefore marked for expulsion back into the deserted and difficult world [Continued ...]...

Name and focus changes for every section, which are now all competitive, resulting in the festival’s structure being “slimmer’.

The ninth Rome Film Festival (Oct 16-25) has revealed a diverse line-up including the Italian premieres for potential awards contenders including David Fincher’s Gone Girl. the world premiere of Takashi Miike’s As the Gods Will and Burhan Qurbani’s We are Young, We are Strong and European premiere of Oren Moverman’s Time Out of Mind, Toronto hit Still Alice and Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet.

This year for the first time the award-winners in each section of the programme will be decided by the audience on the basis of votes cast after the screenings.

Each section has changed name and focus for 2014 and are all competitive, resulting in the festival’s structure being “slimmer’.

Italian comedies Soap Opera and Andiamo a Quel Paese bookend the line-up.

Full line-up

Cinema D’Oggi

World premiere

• Angely...

Stepping out of the haunted village hall for a break from a dance with the supernatural, Simon Merrells took the time to rendezvous with HeyUGuys to discuss his foray into horror with Judas Ghost. Probably most recognised for his role on TV’s Spartacus: War of the Damned in which he played the villainous Crassus with brutal pomp, Merrells is a regular face on both the big and the small screen.

During the course of our brief conversation he shared with us how he discovered his love of performance, and storytelling, as well as his early memories of horror’s most famous monsters and authors. Whilst reflecting on filmmaking as a musical journey, along with the fortunes of the modern short film he invited us inside the village hall to discuss his one location supernatural horror.

Why a career in acting? Was there that one inspirational moment?

Aside from the...