WIREDGOV

Culture Secretary to attend high-level meetings in Los Angeles.

Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Europe and External Affairs Fiona Hyslop will travel to Los Angeles to meet representatives of the film studios behind smash hits including the Hunger Games, Twilight and The Dark Knight Rises.

Ms Hyslop will undertake high-level meetings in the creative capital of the United States with representatives of Warner Bros and Lionsgate. The meetings will build on our existing strong relationships and encourage further investment in Scotland’s creative industries, including the film and screen sectors.

Ms Hyslop will travel to New York and Los Angeles for Scotland Week, attending a series of business and tourism meetings designed to drive jobs and investment to Scotland as well as a number of cultural engagements showcasing Scotland across the United States.

Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment and Cities Keith Brown will travel to Toronto and New York, highlighting existing and recently enhanced transatlantic routes which played a key role in the success of the Commonwealth Games and Ryder Cup, and will be involved in promoting talks to develop new links, with a focus on business and tourism markets.

Both Cabinet Secretaries will meet with industry-leading businesses including Dupont Teijin Films, Assembly Bioscience, Oceana, COM DEV International, Cooke Aquaculture and Air Canada Rouge.

Mr Brown will also be raising the profile of Scotland’s creative sector by highlighting our emerging talent and promoting the country as a world class cultural destination to senior decision makers. He will meet other businesses who have expanded into Scotland successfully to see where this can be replicated for the future and will also promote the Scottish food and drink sector by sharing the benefits of our premium products, highlighting trade opportunities in this sector.

This builds on his previous visit two years ago when meetings with key airlines resulted in an expanded service to Scotland, making it even easier for Canadians to do business here.

Ms Hyslop said:

“During Scotland Week this year I will champion Scotland’s creative industries in a series of high level meetings designed to reinforce and advance our ambitions for Scotland and encourage further investment in our vibrant sector.

“I will meet representatives from the studios behind some of the most well-known films ever made, and promote Scottish talent.

“The Scottish Government has consistently championed Scotland as a location for international film and TV productions, with notable recent successes including World War Z, Under the Skin, The Railway Man and Outlander, which is already the largest ever foreign direct investment in Scotland’s creative industries.

“Scotland is already widely recognised for our world-class talent, crews, facilities and breath-taking locations, and the Scottish Government and its agencies are committed to working together to continue to create and nurture the conditions that will support our industry to flourish.

“The Scottish Government remains committed to optimising the economic potential of the creative industries as a whole. Support has already been provided to more than 850 organisations under the Interactive Scotland programme over the last five years, which has enabled them to innovate and adapt to the opportunities from digital technology within the creative sector and over 100 companies in the last year or so to support international growth plans.

“This Scotland week I’ll be working hard to generate more jobs and investment for Scotland, and to showcase Scotland’s creative industries.”

Notes To Editors

Thirty three Scottish games companies travelled to California in March to take part in the Game Developers Conference (GDC). As a result, a number of companies are engaged in strategic discussions with major publishers and partners which could result in key business deals. At GDC in 2014, there were 30 companies present at the show who indicated in post-event evaluation reports an estimated three-year turnover of £45,136,000 as a result of business conducted at the conference. 

Every year in the USA and Canada thousands of people come together to celebrate Scotland Week, the annual celebration of all things Scottish. 

Scotland Week 2015 runs from Saturday 4th – Saturday 11th April, spanning Tartan Day on 6th April.

Scotland Week 2015 comprises business, cultural, tourism and media engagements for Scottish Government Ministers, business leaders, and key industry stakeholders.

This year, the diverse programme of Scottish inspired events and activities which showcase the best of Scotland across New York, Los Angeles and Toronto.

• Scotland Week kicks off on Saturday 4th April with the 12th annual Scotland Run. The will take place in Central Park, welcoming 10,000 runners to undertake 10k set against the distinctive sound of Scottish bagpipes. The Scotland Run is proud to support the inaugural Scotland Youth Run, a 1.6 mile run for runners aged 7-18. Part of the NYRR Youth Running Series, an initiative to bring running and wellness to the next generation of athletes and runners. For more information go towww.scotland.org/scotlandrun

• Scotland Week celebrates the best of Scottish culture. Events include:
  • A Brush with Inspiration - a portrait exhibition from contemporary Scottish artist Gerard M Burns on display at the Glasgow Caledonian University campus in Soho from 8th – 17th April.
  • The Highland Divas, three artists from Ireland, Scotland, and New Zealand performing celtic ballads in the Metropolitan Room on 8th April;
  • The National Trust for Scotland Foundation USA will present its 8th Annual gala and auction – A Celebration of Scotland’s Treasures on 9th April.
  • Lunchtime concerts – From 6th – 12th April, lunchtime concerts will be held in Bryant Park as a showcase of Scottish music and traditional readings. The New York Metro Pipe Band will play a special Tartan Day Observance concert on 6th April.
  • Kirkin’ o’ the Tartan – The Saint Andrew’s Society of the State of New York commemorates Tartan Day at the Brick Presbyterian Church on 11th April ahead of the Tartan Day Parade.

• Closing the week of events, the 17th annual Tartan Day Parade will see Scots and honorary Scots be led by Grand Marshall in a colourful procession on the Avenue of the Americas on Saturday 11th April. This year, the Grand Marshall will be Graham McTavish, star of time-travelling TV series, Outlander.

• Full details of the Scotland Week programme can be found at www.scotland.org/scotlandweek