Written by on Oct 18, 2013. Posted in On Location

Scottish government announces £2m loan fund to help develop film studio

Studio development in Scotland is set to benefit from a GBP2 million loan fund announced by the Scottish government. The money will be channelled into production development for movies like Sunshine on Leith, as well as plans to establish a large-scale dedicated studio facility in the country.

“I am delighted to announce that the Scottish Government will provide a GBP2 million loan fund to support the long-term development of production infrastructure for commercial film and television in Scotland,” said Scotland’s Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, Fiona Hyslop.

“This investment will also be utilised by the film studio delivery group – involving Scottish Enterprise and Creative Scotland - that I established in May to develop proposals for new film and TV production facilities in Scotland. We want to maximise the benefit of tax reliefs to Scotland and with this in mind the delivery group is examining how film and television production facilities can be further developed.”

The Scottish government is under pressure to help establish a large, purpose-built studio facility that will help broaden Scotland’s appeal as an international filming location. Scotland attracts widespread interest and has appeared in high-profile movies like Brad Pitt’s World War Z (above), but the lack of a large-scale studio makes it tricky for bigger productions to base themselves locally.

The Scottish Government will provide a GBP2 million loan fund to support the long-term development of production infrastructure for commercial film and television in Scotland.

Fiona Hyslop, Scotland Culture Minister

Major upcoming TV miniseries Outlander has committed to a Scottish shoot, but needed to retrofit warehouse facilities outside Glasgow to create the studio space it needed.

Film City Glasgow offers was it refers to as “build space” and production offices, but expanded facilities are required. The complex is considered one of Scotland’s front-runner sites for a new large-scale studio development, but full details of the decision process have been promised within the next few weeks.