£35 million bonanza for Scottish films
A new fund aims to raise £35 million to finance feature films with Scottish elements or to be shot or post-produced in Scotland. The Mackendrick Film Fund, named for Alexander Mackendrick (pictured), the American born Scottish director of iconic British films The Man in The White Suit and Whisky Galore, was launched in 2011 with seed capital of £500,000 from Creative Scotland.
The Fund is now operational and once the £35 million capital is raised, will fund feature projects with budgets in the £3 million to £6 million range. The first film under the aegis of the Fund will be Peter Capaldi’s Born To Be King, starring Ewan McGregor and Kate Winslet, due to commence principal photography in June.
Scotland has recently been popular as a global shooting location with Marc Forster’s World War Z, starring Brad Pitt and Jonathan Glazer’s Under The Skin, starring Scarlett Johansson. The Fund is a co-venture with the Aegis Fund and Prescience. Aegis was the principal backers of critical and commercial hit The King’s Speech [+see also:
film review
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film profile]. Fund director Claire Mundell, Prescience director Paul Brett and ex Scottish Screen staffer Carole Sheridan will vet submitted scripts.
Mundell said, “We look forward to offering film curious investors the chance to participate in the some fantastic commercial films whilst we also help producers realise their projects. We hope in doing so that the Mackendrick Film Fund can play a part in making Scotland an attractive global film destination.”
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