The Happy Lands

View the mini-shoot films here!

Introduction

Theatre Workshop Scotland has been working with communities across Fife to develop the feature film The Happy Lands. Set in Fife in the 1926, The Happy Lands explores the political ideals and identity of the mining community during the 1926 General Strike.

The Happy Lands has been a two-part project and is a result of a rigorous monitoring and evaluation that has demonstrated the breadth and the depth of the engagement of the Fife Mining Community in this remarkable project. The end result will be a feature length film of exceptional quality casting Fifers in their own history.

Primarily, the story has been drawn from the histories of a wealth of community members – with earlier inspirations having been taken from the works of poet Joe Corrie. The majority of cast and many crew hail from Fife – the cast ranging from one year old to ninety years of age. Some 320 participants have taken part in total (and counting).

What’s Happening

Professional training has been offered to local participants – from hair and make-up to set building and camera work – getting the opportunity to develop their creative acumen alongside industry experts in the throngs of a feature film. A series of traineeships have been supported by Skillset Scotland including a ‘Hit the Ground Running Workshop’ and in the lead-up to shooting, the cast also benefitted from a 'Ready for the Show' masterclass with actress Libby McArthur (River City).

Robert Rae, TWS Artistic Director, said;

‘In all our projects we combine artistic excellence and high production values with participatory best practice in the creation of work that resonates beyond those that have been involved in its creation’.

The Shoot period is 16 July – 21 August 2011 with post production due to occur August – December; and the film likely to surface in mid 2012.