Spotlight on Scotland amid huge growth in companies working in film and TV
SCOTLAND’S film and TV industry is going “from strength to strength”, the SNP has claimed, after new figures showed a huge jump in the number of companies working in the industry.
Analysis of Companies House records by the party show that in 2017, 84 businesses working in the sector were incorporated. By 2018, that had jumped to 113, and then by last year the number had increased to 312.
Several productions are currently filming in Scotland including Department Q, a British adaption of a Danish crime thriller about an Edinburgh detective assigned to a new cold case while wracked with guilt following an attack that left his partner paralysed and another policeman dead.
There are also two dramas based on the Lockerbie tragedy. Meanwhile, Blood Of My Blood, an Outlander spin-off, is currently filming in Glasgow.
The SNP’s Michelle Thomson said her party “unashamedly backs our culture sector to succeed”. The MSP added: “Scotland’s film and TV industry is going from strength to strength and the rate of growth of these businesses is truly fantastic to see – bringing to life stories such as Outlander, Shetland, Indiana Jones, and so much more.”
Recent research by Screen Scotland found that the total value of film and TV production activity in Scotland more than doubled between 2019 and 2021. In total, an estimated £617.4 million was spent on the production of film, TV and other audiovisual content in Scotland in 2021.
The body said this was partly down to tax breaks, strategic support work and the opening of new or expanded studio facilities, particularly FirstStage Studios in Edinburgh and the Pyramids Studios in West Lothian.
A Screen Scotland spokesperson said: “It is an incredibly busy time for many parts of the screen sector in Scotland at the moment with a rich variety of projects shooting across the country.
“Underpinning all of this is a vibrant ecosystem of independent production companies, studio facilities and service companies e.g. props, drivers, caterers, security etc which has grown significantly as the level of year-round production in Scotland has rapidly increased in recent years.”