Some 60 years ago, a group of ordinary working people set out to change the world, or, at the very least, let fellow Scots know how they felt about the then current political and social situation the country was in.
Members of the Dawn Cine Group organised jumble sales, made and sold jam, and did what they could to raise funds to make films with a political and social objective. Some of their projects, such as Let Glasgow Flourish, which looked at the overcrowded and sub-standard living conditions in the city’s slums, were very successful.
But their most ambitious project, Lost Treasure – a film made in the summer of 1956, looking at the depopulation of the Scottish Highlands and filmed largely in Sutherland – was never completed and its production abandoned. The film lay in storage for years until it was rediscovered recently.
Decades after being abandoned, it’s about to make its debut and, this week, there are screenings of it in Thurso, Helmsdale and Inverness. Musician Hamish Brown – who, along with musician and singer Drew Wright, will accompany the screening with a live, specially composed soundtrack – takes up the story.
“The collective were really ordinary working people who worked hard to get films made, at a time when filmmaking wasn’t something ordinary people did,” said Hamish.
“Lost Treasure was a very ambitious project and they just didn’t have the resources to complete it, but did manage to make 40 minutes of silent, black and white film shot in Sutherland and the surrounding area.
“For whatever reason, the footage was never edited, which was one of the big challenges we faced when putting together this show with filmmaker Minttu Mantynen.
“The film has an essence of 1950s tourism, but it’s less quaint and much more hard edge, with quite a lot of direct political content in it. It highlights the problems people in the Highlands faced following the Clearances, but also the challenges they faced due to mechanisation, urbanisation and other issues which made it difficult to remain in the countryside.
“A lot of the footage is very interesting as it has things like shots of the Dounreay Nuclear Power Station being built and the Hydro-Electric works going on at Invershin, both of which were modern developments at the time. A lot of the issues addressed by the film, such as land ownership and the rural economy, are surprisingly still relevant.”
Fresh from its world premiere at Glasgow Short Film Festival, Lost Treasure comes home this week, as it can be seen in the Highlands.
It has been given a new lease of life by filmmaker Minttu, Drew and Hamish, who have created a beguiling live soundtrack weaving personal testimony with traditional folk songs and new music. The screening will be followed by a question and answer session with those involved.
Organised by Film Hub Scotland, the CineScore Live event is at the Merlin Cinema, Thurso, at 8.30pm today; Timespan Museum and Art Gallery, Helmsdale, at 7.30pm tomorrow, and can be seen at 2.15pm at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness on Saturday (01463 234234).
