Scottish film talent 'bypassed' in big-screen boom, industry figures warn

STV News

3 days ago

From city streets to sweeping landscapes, Scotland has long been a star of the big and small screen.
In recent years, global productions have transformed familiar locations into backdrops for hits like Indiana Jones, Tetris and Batman – with Spider-Man the latest to swing into Glasgow.
Last year alone, the city hosted 140 productions – from Shetland and The Buccaneers to The Running Man – bringing in an estimated £33m to the economy.
But behind the blockbuster buzz, some in the industry say Scotland's own film talent is stuck on the sidelines. STV News Filming for Marvel's upcoming blockbuster Spider-Man 4 kicks off, as sets and film production vehicles are spotted in Glasgow.
'It's amazing that big movies like Spider-Man are filmed here, but more needs to be done to promote Scottish films by Scottish talent,' senior producer and director Peter Strachan said. 'Just because it's filmed in Scotland, doesn't make it a Scottish production.
'A lot of work has gone into attracting movies to be filmed in Scotland, but more has to be done to support directing, producing and writing talent to flourish and actually make movies.'
Screen Scotland say they're committed to supporting Scotland-based film and TV talent, with most of its production funding going to Scotland-based projects.
Recent examples include Only Child and Mayflies for BBC Scotland, The Rig for Amazon Prime and feature films such as Aftersun and The Outrun. STV News Producer and director Peter Strachan
The agency last month doubled its investment in new film talent from Scotland to £1.2m with the creation of new programme Talent Builder.
This sits alongside a £4m annual film development and production fund that directly invests in films from Scotland-based producers, directors and writers, and the £2.5m Broadcast Content Fund for television projects from Scottish production companies.
Yet even productions that look Scottish on screen, like hit reality TV show The Traitors, can have surprisingly few Scots working behind the camera.
Season three of the show, which filmed in the Highlands, had 13 Scotland-based people working on it, according to Mr Strachan's data – equivalent to 5.94% of the total staff.
'It's considered by London that Scottish screen talent doesn't have the requisite skills or experience. That's just nonsense.
'The question we should be asking is not about Scottish qualification – it's about origination. Are the TV shows and movies we're getting to watch on our screens made in Scotland, by Scottish talent? Research shows that's not to the extent it ought to be.' STV News Karan Bhopal has been involved in extra work for 35 years
Karan Bhopal has worked as an extra on everything from Batman to Indiana Jones – but says too often visiting productions use London-based casting companies.
'I enjoy it – you get to meet people and see things behind the scenes,' he said.
'Being part of motion pictures is such a buzz, but there's many people on the books that want to be a part of productions. We sometimes don't get a bite of that apple.
'Some of the bigger production companies coming from America use London-based casting companies. Sometimes the doors are closed to us – I find that quite unfair.'
Talent agency manager David Bell agreed, saying Scottish professionals are too often overlooked for key jobs.
'Scotland has a wealth of talent, but when the big productions come to film they come up with English staff and generally we're drafted in to plug gaps at the last minute.
'They're not using assistant directors, makeup artists, costume people that have worked in the industry for years. They're bypassing using local talent.'
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