2022 records big filming spend

In 2022, Film Edinburgh recorded 225 filmed productions over 656 days filming on location in Edinburgh, East Lothian and/or the Scottish Borders, with an estimated direct spend in the local economy of £23.8 million.

This is by far the greatest direct spend from filming that the Film Office has ever recorded for the region and reflects the direct impact of having two film studios in the Edinburgh area (one in Leith, the other in Bathgate to the west of the city), and the increase in production by streaming services.

Edinburgh’s drama highlights include Amazon’s adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s novel Anansi Boys, which was based in Edinburgh’s FirstStage Studio over eight months and used Edinburgh locations to stand in for London and Florida; Debutante, an Apple TV period drama based in the Bathgate film studio which filmed in Edinburgh, nine historic properties within Film Edinburgh’s remit and three coastal locations in the city region; One Day, a Netflix series adaptation of David Nicholl’s bestselling novel; Midtown, a Netflix feature film about a group of black superheroes; The Outrun, an adaptation of Amy Liptrot’s novel; Outlander series 7; plus Edinburgh-set TV crime dramas Guilt series 3, Crime series 2, and Loss and Return which filmed exteriors in the city though the productions were based in Glasgow.

Factual TV highlights include The Bidding Room which was based in Leith Theatre; Hobby Man which shone a light on Edinburgh’s chess and beer-making societies; Location Location Location and House Hunters International which showcase the city to millions of viewers; Darren McGarvey’s social documentary study about Addiction in Scotland, Union a history documentary by Professor David Olugosa; Frankie Boyle’s History of the British Monarchy; documentaries about witchcraft and the pardon.

The BFI’s Screen Business report 2021 found that between 40% and 60% of the budget of feature films and TV dramas is spent in the wider community on production requirements, for example, accommodation, cleaning, office supplies, transport, catering, construction materials and plant hire.

High-end TV production based in the Edinburgh city region had positive effect on employment opportunities for Edinburgh residents. The Leith and Bathgate studio-based productions provided full-time work opportunities six to eight months for approximately 100 Edinburgh-based practitioners in 2022.

ScreenSkills, the UK’s screen training funding body, reported 11 Edinburgh residents out of a total of 40 in Scotland were on its year-long ‘Trainee Finder ’ programme in 2022/23 and placed on High End TV and feature film productions in their relevant departments. Screen NETS (New Entrants Training Scheme) , Scotland’s six-month-long drama trainee programme, counted one Edinburgh resident out of a total of six in 2022/23.

With the continued local employment opportunities in the film and TV production sector, the number of local crew and production services registered with Film Edinburgh grew substantially over 2022, further supporting the capacity of the city to host productions. Productions looking for local crew and services are invited to use Edinburgh's Production Guide.