SCOTTISH FILM SUCCESS ABROAD HAS BEEN AS IRREGULAR AS THE BUS SERVICE TO BRIGADOON
Scottish produetion company. with industry
giants .\lirama\ weighing in to snap Hear
[Jun/tie tip for distribution.
‘..\fter readings with the Script l‘aetory dttring the lidinburgli l-‘ilm l-'esti\al. the draft was ready in .\'o\ ember 2002. we were green-lit by l’athe in December and we were in pre- produetion by the end of January 2003.‘ says (iibb. ‘Sigma were our first choice; they We put Scotland on the map by working internationally with companies like /.entropa. And .\lirama.\ eame on board when the film was almost finished. lh'ur l'i‘u/i/xr'os sueeess all
came down to haying the right deyelopment and a unilied ereatiye team.~ says
(iibb.
In the meantime. (iibb had worked on High/uan (int/twine. a script about.
Scotland‘s ealamitous
l‘)7t\’ \Vorld (‘up in Argentina. With l)('(ll' [fruit/tie
yes.
{1'-
now in produetion. (iibb began work as part of Scottish Sereen's Newfoundland fast-track deyelopment proeess. working on .-\lison I)L‘L'I3IL‘\. Llll'L‘L‘lttl'ltll llllll tlL‘l‘lll. .I/lt'Iff/(Z
'.\ly sister has Downs. and for sitter/rte I wanted to write about her as a three— dimensional human being. not someone on some kllltl til politically e‘til'l‘L‘L‘l pedestal. I felt .-\lison l’eebles got great performances from l’aula Sage and Key in .\lel\'idd. and at the heart of the filtn from Lindsay l)unean as the mother. l‘m \ery proud of it.‘ says (iibb. \\ ho is less happy about the eonditions under which the lilm was written. ‘\\'hen we found out we'd got funding. I put my duyet eoyer oyer my head. thinking how am I going to do this giy'en the tittie.’ I was deliyering drafts in two weeks. it was ludicrous. lirom start to finish. .-I‘/il('l'/l:/i‘ took about a year and a half. and the ereatiye learn all got £3000 each. which we put back into the film. 'l‘hat‘s not a liying wage.‘ But despite sueh troubled beginnings. stiller/rife went on to win the audienee award at the lidinburgh l‘iilm liestiyal in 2002s. and will be shown on television later this year.
So what‘s in the pipeline for Scottish film'.’ The feel-good factor is that last year The Jacket and ()n .-l (‘lr'ur l)uy' were shot in Scotland. and both have found a plaee in the 2005 Sundanee selection. (ierry Butler is to play Robert Burns in a biopie. Sigma is working on a filtn abotit boxer Benny Lynch. and its charitable arm. Starfish. is dedicated to breaking down eonfidenee barriers by giy‘ing young Scots an early experience of the film itttlttslt‘y. The success of the 200-1 Scottish B:\l"l‘.-\s reflected the fact that it had l2 features to choose frotn.
Lenny (‘t'ook‘si forecast for 2005 is more cautious howey'er. ‘l‘ll be happy if four films get made in Seotland.‘ he admits. 'But it's a very positiye sign that we were able to aeeommmlate two films that made it to Sundanee. and hopefully the eountry ean dey'elop a better lilmmaking infrastructure as a result.‘
The name of the man who‘ll change Scottish filmmakers‘ lives for the better by helming Seottish Screen has just been anouneed tsee news page 9) and Andrea (iibb has eonerete plans. She is now working on an adaptation of Louise \\'elsh‘s 'l'lu' (Turing Room and hopes the proeess won’t be quite as rushed as previously.
‘Seottish Screen do try to spread their money around. but if you diy'ide a pie into such small fractions it becomes meaningless. On one hand I'm grateful to these schemes. btit I can't say they're the best way of doing it. It‘s like going into labour and being expected to haye the baby in 25 minutes. I know. how hard it is. mine took two days.~
Dear Frankie is on selected release from Fri 21 Jan.
The Hits
I Young Adam David MackenZIe's pure. stylish and haunting adaptation of Trocchi's classic beat novel was a jewel at the bed of a canal. The film was small compared to star Ewan MCGregor's other commitments at the time of filming the was txetween Star Wirs movies) but it did a good trade at the arthouses and performed better than expecth in the States.
I The Magdalene Sisters There's nothing like a bit of flagellation in the name of Catholicism to get the punters queuing up. Peter Mullan's 2002 film about three young ladies' endurance of dehumanising abuse at the hands of the fearsome Irish nuns of the title was a sleeper hit in the UK. North America and Australasia. It remains a textbook example of low cost. good return Scottish film funding.
The Misses
I One Last Chance This turgid comedy thriller set in a small Highland village starring Jamie Sives. Kevin McKidd and Dougray Scott failed to even register with most peOple before disappearing altogether.
I Man Dancin’ Bizarre useless morality drama set in Glasgow, that was actually Just a showcase for the talents of actor Alex Ferns (evil Trevor in Eastenders). unfortunately it was such a non event that it made sure he would never work in that town again.
the future
I The Jacket Produced by George Clooney. this time-travel thriller directed by John Love IS the Devil Maybury has been given a whole heap of cash by the ever-helpful Scottish Screen. It will be shown for the first time at the Sundance Film Festival next year.
I On a Clear Day Peter Mullan is back. this time acting in this low-budget drama about a man who decides to salvage his self-esteem by swimming the English Channel. Could be the next Dear Frank/e. (Paul Date)
I/ 27.". THE LIST 23