Joss Whedon

HUGE demand for tickets to see the directorial debut of the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer has forced organisers of the Edinburgh International Film Festival to arrange more screenings.

In an unprecedented move the festival will now show two more screenings of Oscar and Emmy-nominated Joss Whedon’s world premiere of Serenity.

The film, based on his cult television series Firefly, is set 500 years in the future, and centres on Captain Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds, a hardened veteran who fought on the losing side in a galactic civil war.

Reynolds ekes out a living pulling off small crimes and transporting passengers and cargo on the Firefly-class ship, Serenity. He leads a small, eclectic crew who are the closest thing he has left to family - squabbling, insubordinate and utterly loyal.

Shane Danielsen, artistic director of the Edinburgh International Film Festival, said he was more than happy to meet demand.

Danielsen said: "Whedon is probably more influential in terms of television, science fiction and fantasy than anyone since Gene Roddenberry.

"When we get such a clear signal from the fans that they’re so passionate about a particular film, we’re more than happy, wherever we can, to make additional screenings possible."

This year’s 59th film festival will be dominated by a star-studded world premiere of Richard E Grant’s directorial debut Wah-Wah. The semi-autobiographical film tells the story of Grant’s childhood.