In considering Screen as part of the Regular Funding Network 2018-21, our thinking has been informed by the Creative Scotland’s 10-year Strategic Plan, Unlocking Potential, Embracing Ambition and Creative Scotland On Screen – Film Strategy 2014-17.
Scotland has a strong international reputation for film and Screen sector success on which to build. There are a significant number of filmmakers based here and our talent, both on and off-screen, is highly regarded, internationally recognised and we boast the second and third most attended film festivals in the UK.
It is clear from consultation with the Screen sector that film and moving image appreciation and education along with the development of audiences for diverse and culturally rich cinema experiences is fundamental to the creation of a healthy sector overall.
The Network of organisations supported through Regular Funding 2018-21 includes three organisations that make up the bedrock of cultural cinema provision across Scotland and they will play a significant role in progressing the wider ambitions of the sector in the coming years. These organisations and their constituent businesses provide access to, appreciation and enjoyment of cinema across Scotland, through cultural cinemas in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen, Scotland’s two international film festivals, Glasgow Film Festival and Edinburgh International Film Festival, and through Scotland’s famous Screen Machine, which provides the full cinema experience in remote, rural and underserved areas.
New to the Regular Funding Network is Alchemy Film and Arts, based in Hawick in the Scottish Borders, making a strategic and internationally recognised contribution to the development of Artists Moving Image, as well as contributing more broadly to cultural provision in the Borders.
Collectively, these organisations deliver programmes of work that include access and enjoyment of cultural cinema, audience development initiatives, the development of remote cinemas and smaller scale film festivals, talent development and industry engagement programmes as well as international outreach programmes that connect Scotland’s filmmaking community to the international film industry.
Their work will help ensure that as many people as possible across Scotland have the opportunity to engage with and enjoy the very best of cinema from Scotland and around the world.
We will continue to support the development and production of quality film and television drama projects from Scotland’s filmmakers through our Targeted Funding route and we will work closely with the sector and public partners to address the wider challenges and opportunities for the sector through the soon to be launched Screen Unit, the proposal for which was published in December 2017 and followed the announcement in the Scottish Government’s 2017 Programme for Government of a doubling of resources for the Screen Sector in Scotland from £10 million per annum to £20 million next year.
We are confident that support for this Network of organisations will help position the Screen sector at the heart of Scotland’s economic and cultural life in a nation that celebrates the importance of every aspect of film culture.
Find out more about the Regular Funding Network 2018-21.
Image: Glasgow Film Festival / Photo: Glasgow Film Festival