Six Scottish screenwriters have been selected for the first iteration of the First Draft development scheme, a year-long programme supporting emerging screenwriters based across Scotland.
The scheme is backed by Glasgow-based charity The Portal Arts and Screen Scotland. Screenwriters will receive £15,000 to support development, with up to £5,000 on a case-by-case basis for enhanced development if required. First Draft begins this month and runs until November 2026.
Participating screenwriters include Jason Bradbury, who previously ran London-based creative agency Hello Mozart, and whose short films include BFI London Film Festival premiere We Collide and BFI Flare premiere My Sweet Prince.
His project is queer thriller Layby, which follows a solitary Scottish lorry driver who becomes entangled with a volatile man on the run in Poland.
Also taking part is Alia Ghafar with comedy drama Lav Story, about a woman’s spontaneous night-long odyssey through Edinburgh; Dawn Sievewright’s Mimi, which aims to reframe a Victorian scandal through a contemporary feminist lens; Sean Watson and Fin Cramb’s Highland horror Circles; and Lillian Salvatore’s psychological drama Sasha Goes Swimming, set in a remote Scottish motel.
Lizzie Gray, a TV producer, will support the filmmakers through the process, which also includes masterclasses and industry mentoring.
First Draft forms part of Screen Scotland’s roster of talent development programmes, first announced last year, with a combined annual budget of £1.2m.
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