2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Band pens response to Hollywood using Glasgow as an 'every city'
Now, with Glasgow being transformed into New York to accommodate filming for the latest movie in the Spider-Man franchise, The Tenementals have felt it the perfect occasion to reemphasize the central message of their song 'Post Production'.
One of the nine tracks to feature on Glasgow: A History (Vol. I of VI), the song responds to both Glasgow's status as a post-industrial city and to how the city is increasingly used as an 'everycity' in film production.
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I'm fed up – what's the point in Spider-Man taking over Glasgow?
"As is well established, in the last few years, Glasgow has stood in for Gotham City in Batgirl and Batman, and the city has also been utilised to represent numerous other locations, including in The House of Mirth, World War Z, Baar Baar Dekho and Indiana Jones 5. Govan Graving Docks even became a First World War trench in 1917.
"We had to keep updating the lyrics for Post Production when we sang it live to keep up with the latest Hollywood film being shot here. When we recorded it in 2023, we sneaked in a line about Indian Jones 5 being shot here because it had just been shot here. If we were recording it now, Spider-Man would have to get a mention."
The Tenementals use music to explore the radical history of Glasgow (Image: Holger Mohaupt) The Marvel movie, set for release next year, has been filmed in several parts of the city, including Blythswood Street, Pitt Street, Wellington Street, and Bothwell Street.
US flags and banners have been draped on the sides of buildings, and Big Apple-style street furniture have lined the Glasgow streets alongside New York Police Department cars, buses, and now-iconic yellow taxis.
Prof Archibald added: "Spiderman has dominated the city centre as crowds gather to catch a glimpse of the Marvel man moving magically through the city. And these stories feature large in newspaper and social media reports.
"Of course, cinema is transnational, and on one hand, these films make an exciting and interesting addition to the city. In constructing a sense of the city in what we might call the 'Glasgow imaginary', the danger is that these transnational productions function as a stand in for local productions.
Large crowds of onlookers have gathered in Glasgow to watch the filming of the new Spider-Man movie (Image: Colin Mearns/The Herald) "Where are the local films being made by local filmmakers that are being screened in the GFT or Cineworld? Why is it that when cinema features in newspapers it's about the city as a setting for other stories other than our own?
"Post Production's lyrics deal with the impact of the erasure of an actually existing Glasgow through this process.
"It's not about being narrow-minded or seemingly parochial. It's about the need to have a rich and diverse film culture where people who live here make films about our concerns, our dreams, our hopes, our fears, again, in all their rich diversity. That's what a film culture worthy of a name would be developing.
"Film policy is caught between the tension of developing a Scottish cinema and developing filmmaking in Scotland. A policy which leans towards the city standing in for various other locations favours the latter; however, the stress must surely be on developing the former."
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council responded: 'While Glasgow's ability to attract major productions to the city speaks volumes and brings a welcome economic boost, it should be understood that the majority of productions filming here are the steady stream of UK-based TV dramas and local TV content shooting throughout the year, and these employ crews that are almost entirely local. These productions provide the best training and employment opportunities for those locally-based people working in the sector, which has continued to develop in recent years.'
A Screen Scotland spokesperson said: 'As we provide a confidential locations service to Film & TV productions looking to film in Scotland we can't unfortunately comment on discussions about specific productions until or unless we're able to.
'That said, Scotland's competitive Film & TV funds, world-renowned talent, crews, facilities and locations and the UK's attractive tax breaks continue to drive strong international interest in Scotland as a filming destination."
