Screen bid is a Sma’shing idea
Team want to make movie about town’s historic strike
A team of creatives have launched a £25,000 bid to bring Paisley’s Sma’ Shot Day to the silver screen in a first-ever musical telling the untold story of the town’s history.
The project - which is the brainchild of well- known Buddie Tommy McGrory - aims to capture the lesser known tale of one of the town’s biggest celebrations using the power of movies and music.
Described as Paisley’s untold story, the featurelength film will take viewers back to 1856 to one of the most pivotal workers’ strikes in British History which is still celebrated every year in the town, with thousands of people lining the streets in July to mark the occasion.
Tommy and his team have spent the past year developing the film - which would be the first ever movie about Paisley shot entirely in the town.
Originally set to be a screenplay, Tommy decided he wanted to “go all in” to bring the adaptation to the screen to showcase the town’s proud history.
He told the Express: “This is the first time something like this has ever been done.
“There has never been a film, book or documentary made entirely about Sma’ Shot and there has never been a film all about Paisley shot entirely in Paisley.
“It is quite unique and while I think a lot of people celebrate it every year, they still don’t know the full story behind it and that is what we want to put out there.”
The journey to making the film a reality began more than a year ago when Tommy was granted funding by Renfrewshire Council to study Sma’ Shot Day and develop his findings for a screenplay.
However, when covid hit it halted all hopes of bringing his work to the stage, leaving him and his team defeated.
It was then he went back to the drawing board, teaming up with others passionate about the project to develop a script for a movie.
The film will tell the story of local weaver Robert Campbell, a proud family man who has had enough of being treated unfairly and poorly paid for his work.
He confronts the bosses to ask for more money for the work he isn’t being paid for which was using extra thread called the Sma’ Shot.
Robert is trusted by the community and is then thrust into being a leader, which changes his and the weavers’ lives forever.
Speaking up for his fellow workers’ rights, and facing crippling frustration as his bosses refuse to give workers what they are worth, Robert rallies them to strike.
The film will focus on this monumental moment in history which is a powerful part of Paisley’s history.
Tommy says the thoroughly researched