Production is underway on a short film designed to showcase the community, culture and
heritage of the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere.
Glasgow-based firm Urbancroft Films has been commissioned to work with a cast of local volunteers in capturing the essence of life and community across the region.
Project Officer turned scriptwriter Nic Coombey said he was “thrilled to see the dream made real”, as shooting commenced on the Borgue shore, one of several locations where Urbancroft will be filming locals young and old involved in a variety of Biosphere pursuits.
He added: “The PLACE Project has always been about telling stories: looking at what’s important to local people about where they live, and what the land and the nature within it means to them.”
The PLACE in the Biosphere Project is part of the National Lottery Heritage Fund Great Place Scheme and is co-funded by Dumfries and Galloway and South Ayrshire Councils in partnership with nine communities in South West Scotland. It has successfully managed to maintain an adapted programme throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Working with local residents the PLACE volunteers have collected, researched and illustrated on a painted map the names of more than 800 fields in the Borgue peninsula in an initiative that will continue even after PLACE officially concludes in September 2021.
The untitled Biosphere film is underway alongside the field-names project, virtual reality reconstructions of Ardstinchar Castle, Ballantrae, and research into the photographic history of Kirkcowan.
And even with a three-minute runtime and a tight budget, there is a good chance this film could bring these local stories to a global audience in the months to come.
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