How to get more films like Under The Skin made and develop domestic talent? Film making in Scotland has never been easy. Scots almost unrivalled appetite for cinema rarely finds its way into the pockets of performers, producers, crew or facilities. We make so few films each year that the tiny number of bets we can place, thanks mainly to the roughly £3 million in lottery funding disbursed annually by government agency Creative Scotland, are statistically unlikely to pay off critically or commercially more than once every few years. It’s rare that we see a Scottish-set or Scotland-originated story on our screens – big or small. So when a film like Under The Skin comes along, especially in the wake of recent box office hits Filth and Sunshine On Leith, it’s unequivocally good news. Imagine a future in which Scottish producers were able to place more bets across a genuine portfolio of projects, having accumulated experience more rapidly than a film every two or three years allows. This would give them more creative nous, financial muscle and credibility; strengthening their hands when it comes to optioning scripts and books, hiring writers and attracting directors. Imagine we had the level of film funding that the Irish, Danes or Finns enjoy – we could support both new talent in edgier work and more established stars in bigger-budget projects. Imagine if we had sufficient studio capacity to keep an Under The Skin here for the half of its ten-week shoot that was spent indoors. Independence would undoubtedly be the most direct route to making this possible. For example a Scottish-controlled public service broadcaster could bring a big boost to domestic drama production, particularly with the financial benefit of “repatriating” the TV licence fee (even allowing for the cost of buying in BBC services).
Posted on: Tue, 18 Mar 2014 16:22:02 +0000
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