WHO needs Cannes in May when you can have Edinburgh in June?

It is not a question one has heard a lot in recent years. The Edinburgh International Film Festival has had a hit and miss time of it of late, with the event sometimes struggling to find its place in the ever growing galaxy of film festivals. Should it be populist or niche, star-led or back to basics, Scottish or internationalist, red carpet or grey pavement, radical or family friendly?

The answer, as shown in the 2015 programme launched yesterday in the capital, is all of the above. Under the artistic direction of Mark Adams, film critic, the festival looks set to return to the highly-regarded form it enjoyed under Hannah McGill. Which just goes to show, if you want a job done well, employ a film critic. That is definitely not a statement one hears every day.

So what are the must-have tickets when booking opens to the public at noon tomorrow [MAY 29]?

The EIFF (June 17-28) shows it is first and foremost a Scottish event with home-grown openers and closers. Comedy-drama The Legend of Barney Thomson, starring Robert Carlyle and Emma Thomson in the tale of an unassuming barber about to have his world turned on its napper, brings the curtain up on June 17, while Aberdeen director and helmer of the deeply impressive Shell, Scott Graham, closes proceedings with the family drama, Iona. Also of interest to the home crowd will be Hector, with Peter Mullan in the title role as a drifter.

Fresh from Cannes and garlanded with five star reviews comes Amy, a documentary portrait of the life, times, and breathtaking talent of Amy Winehouse. Directed by Asif Kapadia, who made the majestic Senna, the trailer alone is a heartbreaker. Love & Mercy is another look at a music legend, this time Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, played at different stages of his career by John Cusack and Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood).

Edinburgh has been the lucky host to many a UK premiere of the latest Disney-Pixar blockbusters, and the tradition continues with Inside Out, this year's family gala. Also fresh from Cannes, the director is Pete "Up" Docter and the voice cast in this tale of a young girl duelling with her emotions includes Amy Poehler.

Ewan McGregor brings his new drama, Last Days in the Desert, to Edinburgh. With the Trainspotting star playing Jesus in the wilderness, Rodrigo Garcia's drama looks set to be a festival talking point. McGregor will be interviewed live in one of the festival's In-Person events. Also ready to take questions will be Malcolm McDowell and Jane Seymour, screen legends and stars of the romantic drama Bereave, and Hong Kong director Johnnie To (Exiled, Election). If you want to hear the stories behind such classics as One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, In the Heat of the Night, and The Thomas Crown Affair, don't miss Oscar-nominated cinematographer Seamus McGarvey in conversation with Oscar-winning Haskell Wexler.

This year's festival includes 24 world premieres, eight international premieres, 16 European, 84 UK and two Scottish. Among the UK premieres is the war drama 13 Minutes by Oliver Hirschbiegel, the director of Downfall, about a German radical who acted on his hatred of Hitler. Having its world premiere is Under Milk Wood, with a voice cast that includes Rhys Ifans and Charlotte Church. The thriller Cop Car finds Kevin Bacon out of the mobile phone ads and back to what he does best, while Jason Schwartzman and Taylor Schilling charm in the left-field comedy The Overnight. The Diary of a Teenage Girl, a drama set in the Seventies starring Kristen Wiig, has its UK premiere.

Documentary is always a strong strand at Edinburgh, with the likes of Man on Wire and The Imposter making their debuts in the capital. This year, look out for Prophet's Prey, from the Oscar-nominated Amy Berg (West of Memphis), about religious fundamentalism, and The Wolfpack, a portrait of a film-obsessed New York family. Big Gold Dream: The Sound of Young Scotland 1977-1985, directed by Grant McPhee, is a must for those of a certain age and musical bent.

Included in the American indie strand is Franny, with Richard Gere as a philanthropist on a mission, and Beyond the Lights, a musical drama with Danny Glover and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Belle).

Talent will out is the lesson from the festival's Little Big Screen strand. See how the likes of Spielberg, Michael Mann, and Tobe Hooper made their mark in television before graduating to wider screen things. Also to be found on memory lane is a remastered version of The Third Man and a screening of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three. The golden ticket for true nostalgics, however, has to be a 30th anniversary screening of Back to the Future with live accompaniment from the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.

[itals] Filmhouse members can book now. Otherwise, booking opens today at noon. Visit edfilmfest.org.uk or telephone 0131 623 8030.