Scare tactics:scotland bids to be home of horror films
Major push at Cannes to attract new productions to the country
SCOTLAND is hoping to make a killing.
At the world’s most famous film festival this week, the country is to position itself as the movie world’s new home for horror films.
Films such as Outpost, Outcast and new horror movie Citadel, made by Scotland’s Sigma Films, are part of a new wave of gory thrillers made in here.
Now film companies from Scotland and the nation’s arts funder, Creative Scotland, are launching a drive to attract more horror films to the country from which such spine-chillers as The Wicker Man, Doomsday and Dog Soldiers have emerged.
There is only one film from Scotland in competition at Cannes this year: Ken Loach’s The Angel’s Share, a drama comedy shot partly in Glasgow.
Cr e a t i ve Scotland has organised for a series of film producers from Scotland to come to Cannes to make connections with film power brokers and potentially forge funding and distribution partnerships.
At a horror-themed event tomorrow, Ian Davies, managing director of Initialize Films, a film consultancy that has organised the producers’ meetings, will explain how Scotland has now “cracked the genre” and future adaptations of classic Scottish novels could continue the success.
The writer and director Ciaran Foy and his Glasgow-shot horror movie Citadel won the Midnighters Audience Award for best feature at the influential South By South West festival in Texas earlier this year.
Other recent horror movies made in Scotland include Outpost, Outcast and The Book of Blood, and new ones in production include Makar Production’s Let Us Prey.
Davies said his company helped arrange “targeted” meetings with co-producers, distributors and other film business figures to either sell completed films or help find funding for those ready to be made.
“Scotland is getting known as a place to shoot horror movies, and of course there is the tradition in Scotland of gothic writing,” he said.
“If you can go into the market with an idea that helps generate attention, if you can package
Scotland is getting known as a place to shoot horror movies ... we are trying to attract more companies
ideas together that makes you more noticeable, that is very useful – and that is what we are doing with horror.
“We are trying to attract companies interested in making horror films in Scotland.
“Scotland has producers who are very entrepreneurial and directors who are talented but they are not known in the international market and this is why we are here.
“It works. In the past three years we have had positive outcomes in Cannes for between 25 and 30 films.”
The horror presentation is part of Scotland Day tomorrow at the Cannes Film Festival, which will start with a networking breakfast at the UK film centre in Cannes.
In addition to Sigma Films, Scottish producers and companies in Cannes include Angus Lamont, Carole Sheridan of Ecosse Films, Paul Welsh with his acclaimed movie Lore and Peter Broughan of Rob Roy Films.
Creative Scotland is hoping the chance for producers to mingle and network with power-brokers, distributors and co-producers will lead to more Scottish films at Cannes next year.
The event is also seen as a ideal time for Creative Scotland, – minus its former chief, Belle Doyle, who recently left her post – to secure big films to locate in Scotland.
Last year the shooting of Cloud Atlas, starring Halle Berry; and Under the Skin, starring Scarlett Johansson, were secured after meetings at the festival.
Along with the TV series Young James, they generated almost £5.5 million for Glasgow’s economy.