The Edinburgh International Festival has revealed new video portraits of five of the most celebrated artists appearing this year.

 

The films present interviews with actors, musicians, writers and directors talking about their art.

They feature Juliette Binoche, Simon McBurney, Nicola Benedetti, Robert Lepage and Anne-Sophie Mutter.

Scottish violinist Benedetti takes a personal look at her own performance style, and the vulnerabilities and idiosyncrasies of a musician on stage, while actor and director Simon McBurney reflects on the intensity of live theatre.

Juliette Binoche describes the importance of actors "fusing body and mind" when performing on stage while violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter discusses the importance of music as a way of bringing people together.

The video portraits build on the portraits of Festival artists created by Scottish photographer Gavin Evans.

Fergus Linehan, the artistic director of the EIF, said: "The role that artists and their creative talent plays is absolutely essential to what the Festival is, and we wanted to capture on film some of this year's artists and find out why they're so incredibly passionate about what they do.

"These videos give a rare glimpse inside the minds of five world-renowned artists, and I think will give Festival audiences a unique understanding of what they are thinking and feeling when performing for them this August."