Lack of scots film studios ‘a failure’

A Hollywood director has told MSPs the lack of studio facilities in Scotland is “crippling” the country’s film and television sector.

Tommy Gormley, who has worked on Star Trek Into Darkness, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and Wonder Woman, claimed there had been a “cataclysmic failure at every level” to deliver for the industry.

He also suggested Holyrood be given control over rebates for film and TV, saying having a more competitive regime here than the rest of the UK would attract productions “in a New York second”.

Mr Gormley, who was born in Glasgow and spent seven years in Los Angeles, was giving evidence to MSPs on the parliament’s culture committee about the Scottish screen sector.

The assistant director, who has also worked on several of the Mission Impossible films, stated: “There is a cataclysmic failure at every level to deliver.

“The fact that production in Scotland is catastrophically low compared to the UK, it’s a disgrace.”

He added: “We can’t spend every day filming up in Glencoe doing scenery, you need a film studio, it’s not rocket science, it’s very simple.”

Committee convener Joan McAlpine told him tax breaks for the sector “are entirely reserved to Westminster”, prompting Mr Gormley to suggest: “We should get them back.”