White Male Heart
Hugh and Aaron have been friends for as long as they can remember, their symbiotic relationship forged through growing up together and living in one of the last great wildernesses of Europe - the Scottish Highlands.
Hugh, a local farmer's son, assists Aaron, the heir to a shooting estate, as they stalk the remote mountains populated by hundreds of red deer. It's highly skilful, physically demanding work and Hugh and Aaron are masters at it.
The boys only truly come alive when they're hunting and any time spent away from the hills consists of winding up the residents of their small village and drinking cheap lager whilst speeding about in a beat-up truck. It's a perfect,
Care free life - but it's all about to end.
Arriving from London on holiday, Rebecca, 28, is fleeing the messy fallout of a recent relationship. She's intriguing, beautiful, and gives as good as she gets. And compared to the other girls in the village - well, there is no comparison. The moment Hugh sees her he can't get her out of his head.
They embark on a sexual relationship that quickly becomes something much deeper. Through Rebecca, Hugh also discovers the possibility of a world beyond the village - even beyond Scotland that makes him apprehensive but also fills him with excitement and awe. And the chance of leaving to discover it with Rebecca is increasingly the only thing that matters to Hugh.
Neglected, Aaron watches from the sidelines as his life-long friend is torn from him. Unable to confide in his Alzheimer's-afflicted father and emotionally distant mother, Aaron turns in on himself, attempting to capture the rarest of birds, a Golden Eagle. This, in turn, is to earn the respect of Mac, a notorious poacher, distrusted by the community, who lives the kind of uncluttered, outdoor life that Aaron desires for himself and Hugh.
When Aaron's mother announces the shooting estate is to be sold, Aaron is rocked, feeling that his whole world is being wrenched from under him. His increasingly desperate efforts to stop the sale escalate into violence and after assaulting his teenage girlfriend he flees into the mountains.
As the culling season nears its end, the ties that bind the boys are stretched to breaking point. Hugh is caught between his love for Rebecca and his concern for the increasingly out-of-control Aaron. A confrontation ensues on a mountainside that results in the death of an innocent traveller and for Hugh and Aaron now, there is no way back.
For Hugh to carry on living he must confess his part in the tragedy and so betray his only friend. However, their relationship is so deeply forged in blood and loyalty that, finally, only death can break its grip on both of them.
'White Male Heart' is an unblinking examination of what a rural Scottish community breeds. Lies, resentment and enduring hardship are what mark the lives lived in this beautiful northern extreme. Fuck your tartan and beautiful scenery. Fuck shortbread and the famous Scottish hospitality. Whisky's not for celebrating, it is for getting obliterated on a Saturday night and then looking for some bastard to hit.
Current Status: Adapted from the best selling novel by Ruaridh Nicoll with a script by Olivier award winning playwright David Harrower and to be directed by Golden Bear winning filmmaker Peter Mackie Burns. The project is a co-development with Swedish producer Helena Danielsson of Hepp Film and will be Executive produced in the UK by Julie Baines of Dan Films. Development has been financed by Scottish Screen, The Glasgow Film Office, Film I Vast and Sonet Film (Swe). White Male Heart is currently in financing and is scheduled to shoot in late summer 2008.
Heritage
Heritage is an epic tale of love, immigration, war, religion, nationalism, the end of colonialism and the violent beginning of modernity. Set in Canada during the First World War, Heritage brings a fresh perspective on conflicts that affect our lives today seen through the eyes of a tragic young love affair.
Current Status: Heritage is an adaptation of the internationally renowned play of the same name by Northern Irish playwright Nicola McCartney. Finance for development has been secured from The Glasgow Film Office, Scottish Screen and the Northern Ireland Film Office. A first draft will be delivered in the Summer of 2007.
Further Than The Furthest Thing
On a remote Island in the middle of the Atlantic secrets are buried. When the outside world comes calling, intent on manipulation for political and economic reasons, the islanders find their own world blown apart from the inside as well as beyond.
Current Status: ‘Further Than The Furthest Thing’ is the adaptation of the Zinnie Harris play of the same name. Originally a co-production between the National Theatre and the Edinburgh International Festival 'Further that the Furthest Thing' will be adapted by Zinnie. A treatment has been commissioned with support from the Glasgow Film Office.