The
best-laid Movie plans have been known to gan a-gley
and in the case of a £20m film plan to portray
the life of Scotland’s bard Robert Burns
they certainly seem to. The film is now heading
for the Scottish courts after a fall out between
the producers, the former director and a government
quango.
Alloway Films, the producers of Clarinda, say
a row over the movie’s script has set the
project back eight months and prevented major
Hollywood actors from taking up leading roles.
Alloway, established two years ago by veteran
Scottish actor James Cosmo, theatre producer Ed
Crozier and producer and writer Eric Rowan, is
to sue the former director and an enterprise company
for a seven-figure sum.
The row centres on the script by Rob Roy screenwriter
Alan Sharp. Alloway and director Vadim Jean, who
asked Sharp to get involved, approached Scottish
Enterprise Ayrshire for a grant. They were awarded
£100,000 but only days later it was withdrawn.
Alloway alleges that, without informing them,
Jean took the same script and made an independent
approach to Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire. They
allege Jean claimed the project was his and he
would set up a film company in Irvine to produce
it. Jean was awarded a £150,000 grant to make
the film without Alloway’s involvement.
Alloway admits that Jean paid Alan Sharp out of
his own pocket to write Burns’s story for
the screen.
However, they say a legal contract signed by Alloway’s
directors and Jean, includes a "buy back option"
which entitled the company to the script when
the production money was raised, and it was not
Jean’s property.
The idea for a movie of Burns’s life originated
with Scotland on Sunday sportswriter Martin Hannan
who drafted the first script for Alloway and signed
a deal which protected his intellectual property
rights.
The film centres on Burns’s relationship
with a married Edinburgh lady of high society,
Agnes McLehose, known as ‘Clarinda’.
Their relationship has been described as the greatest
love story the city has ever seen.
Hannan’s treatment has been developed by
Sharp and the script is said to be "sensational".
Stars including Johnny Depp, Ewan McGregor and
Robert Carlyle had been keen to take the role
of Burns, but because of the delay all now are
working on other projects.
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The
best-laid Movie plans have been known to gan a-gley
and in the case of a £20m film plan to portray
the life of Scotland’s bard Robert Burns
they certainly seem to. The film is now heading
for the Scottish courts after a fall out between
the producers, the former director and a government
quango.