Bafta success for Scottish film debutants can inspire others to great heights – Brian Ferguson

It is not every year that Scottish filmmakers get the chance to bask in the limelight of success at the Baftas.

That means there is all the more reason to celebrate an even rarer occasion of two big Scottish winners at one of the biggest events in the business. Charlotte Wells, the writer and director of Aftersun, and Lesley Paterson, co-writer of All Quiet On The Western Front, were pretty much unknown quantities in the Scottish film industry this time last year.

In some respects, they appear to have emerged from nowhere to claim major awards. But, in truth, the seemingly swift success of Wells, 35, and Paterson, 42, is the result of years of dedication to their craft and pursuing their cinematic visions.

It is perhaps telling that the careers of both Wells and Paterson have been shaped in the United States – in New York and California respectively. But both films are undoubtedly rooted in their upbringing in Scotland.

Charlotte Wells poses with the award for outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer 'Aftersun' at the Bafta Film Awards ceremony in London (Picture Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)

Wells has recalled telling her classmates at school of her dream of becoming a film director and of hustling for tickets at film festival screenings. Her debut feature – released seven years after her debut short – was partly inspired by childhood holidays with her father.

Paterson spent 16 years trying to get a screenplay for an adaptation of 1929 novel All Quiet on the Western Front, which she studied at school in Stirling, off the ground. She pursued a career as a world-class triathlete for much of this time, using prize money from races to help retain the rights to the book.

The achievements of Wells and Paterson offer plenty of hope for future generations of talent at a time when there are other rising stars of Scottish screen making a name for themselves. The return of the Glasgow Film Festival next month is a timely opportunity for some of them to step into the limelight.

One of the stars to watch out for is James Price, the filmmaker dubbed the Springburn Scorsese for his acclaimed work in short films, whose first feature-length drama will be showcased at the event and will also be launched on the BBC iPlayer in the spring. Andrew Cumming, whose feature film debut, Stone Age horror The Origin, which was made in the Highlands at the height of the pandemic, will also get a festival premiere, has since been hired to work on a major new ITV crime thriller set in Edinburgh.

Lesley Paterson won the best-adapted screenplay at the Bafta Film Awards for 'All Quiet on the Western Front' (Picture: Dominic Lipinski/Getty Images)

The festival’s coveted opening gala slot has been landed by another debut feature, Girl, written and directed by Adura Onashile, who has previously made her name on the Scottish theatre scene, including a starring role in Medea at last year’s Edinburgh International Festival. It is also worth recalling that the first big Scottish drama series to be launched this year, supernatural eco-thriller The Rig, was commissioned by Amazon from another newcomer, writer David Macpherson. Other dramas returning this year include a third and final series of Guilt, by Neil Forsyth.

No one is going to claim that it is the easiest time to be making film and TV productions in Scotland. But there is plenty of evidence to suggest it is a great time to be seeking inspiration from those who have managed to make it.