Our July news

Coming up in the July Newsletter

In this month's newsletter, we'll be bringing you the latest Screen Scotland news and updates, some unmissable industry opportunities from across the sector, and we'll be celebrating the success of Scottish talent in our Screen Shout-outs.

If you have any feedback on our newsletter, please get in touch. We'd love to hear from you.

Our latest news updates

The Edinburgh International Film festival, taking place 23-25 August, has made several exciting line-up announcements. It has been revealed that the Screen Scotland funded documentary, Prince of Muck, will have its world premiere at the festival. In addition, it was announced that PIG starring Nicolas Cage will kick-off this year’s programme and Billy Crystal’s Here Today will bring the festival to a close. The full programme will be announced 28 July on the EIFF website.

Short Circuit, the talent film initiative from Film City Futures and Glasgow Film, announced the 16 shortlisted films that will be developed through the short film scheme Sharp Shorts. The 16 selected projects will now enter the development phase of the Screen Scotland supported scheme, leading up to the opportunity to pitch for production funding. Find out more on Sharp Circuit’s website.

Amazon Studios have announced that a TV adaption of Neil Gaiman’s novel Anansi Boys will be shot in Scotland. The six-episode limited series is set to start filming later this year. This exciting news comes after last month's announcement that Season 2 of Gaiman’s hit series Good Omens will shoot entirely in Scotland.

The Hebrides International Film Festival (HIFF) returned this month after being cancelled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s festival brought a celebration of independent global cinema to venues across the Outer Hebrides, focusing specifically on the impact of climate change on rural communities.

Industry Opportunities

Screen Scotland is looking for a Screen Production and Skills Officer to assist in the delivery and development of Screen Scotland’s Skills Strategy at a time of significant growth for the sector. This exciting new position is open for applications until Monday 9 August, 2021. View the full information and download the application form on the Creative Scotland website.

BBC Studios together with Amazon Prime have launched paid traineeships for those living in Scotland to work on Good Omens Season 2, filming exclusively in Scotland this year. Traineeships cover a range of television roles which are perfect for those looking to get a foot in the industry. Full details about how to apply can be found in this tweet from Screen Scotland.

UK screen sector trade body Pact is looking for 30 of the UK’s most exciting emerging production and distribution indies to take part in its brand new development scheme, Future30. The selected indies will benefit from free Pact membership for two years and a tailored programme of support to help their businesses to grow. Visit Pact’s website for more details.

Screen Scotland is delighted to be a headline sponsor for the 2021 Edinburgh International TV Festival. We have 20 fully funded Delegate Passes to offer to independent production companies in Scotland, giving full access to the TV Festivals’ online content sessions and networking opportunities. Find out more on the Screen Scotland website and apply by 2 August.

Research Updates

Screen Scotland has commissioned a full-scale economic impact study to assess the value of the Scottish screen sector. To help gather evidence for this work our consultants, Saffery Champness and Nordicity, created an online survey to assess screen production activity in Scotland in 2019. The survey went out at the start of July, closing last week. Find out more about the study and why Screen Scotland are commissioning it on our website.

The Unscripted TV Skills Fund is asking for information on skills gaps and job shortages from those making unscripted TV programmes across the UK to inform future investment decisions. The Fund’s council are looking to hear from from production companies and staff/freelancers involved in crewing up across a range of genres in unscripted. Find out more and complete the survey on the ScreenSkills website.

Screen Shout-out

The Scotland-made theatrical documentary, Killing Escobar, has won the award for “Best Feature Documentary Film” at the Stockholm Film & Television Festival. The film from Two Rivers Media tells the true story of Peter McAleese who was hired by a Colombian drug cartel to assassinate Pablo Escobar. You can watch the documentary on BBC iPlayer now.

Scottish talent Roddy Hart and Tommy Riley have won a Daytime Emmy Award for their original song "Suffragette City" from the Animaniacs reboot. Many congratulations to the both of them and the entire Animaniacs team.

Congratulations to the Dying to Divorce team, including Scotland-based filmmaker Sinead Kirwan, for winning the Jury Special Prize in the Documentary Film (News) category at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival and the Amnesty International Film Award at Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. Read about the film on the Made in Scotland section of the Screen Scotland website.

The Grierson Awards, also known as the British Documentary Awards, announced their Shortlist for 2021. Scottish nominees include Everyman from Bombito Productions, Firecrest Films for Michael Palin's Himalaya: Journey of a Lifetime, and the Screen Scotland supported Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliché.

Jennie Kermode Interview - Website Feature

This month, we released an interview on the Screen Scotland website with film critic, writer and human rights advocate, Jennie Kermode. Jennie's passion for advocating diversity within the screen sector shines through in this interview with Alison Smith, the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Officer here at Screen Scotland.

In the interview, we hear Jennie's thoughts on how best to tackle the underrepresentation of diverse groups within the screen sector, whether the Oscars' new diversity standards are going to be a catalyst for change, and how the acceleration of remote working could improve accessibly for all within the film industry.

Thanks again to Jennie for speaking with us. You can watch the full video interview on the Screen Scotland website.

Image Credits: 1: EIFF's Film Fest in the City 2019 edition, courtesy of EIFF 2: Raised hands at an Edinburgh TV Festival event 3: MacBook typing from Adobe Stock 4: Still from Dying to Divorce, courtesy of Production company Dying to Divorce Ltd. 5: Female filmmakers from Adobe Stock.

Screen Scotland is the dedicated partnership for screen in Scotland, delivering enhanced support for all aspects of our screen sector.

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