A lack of a world-class film studio saw Scotland miss out on huge productions like Star Wars and Game of Thrones, it has been claimed.
The Scottish Government is under increasing pressure to make a decision on a £140 million six-stage complex, which would see more movies and TV shows shot in Perthshire.
The Pentland Film Studio is earmarked for a 96-acre site at Straiton, on the outskirts of Edinburgh.
Former Warner Brothers development manager Jim O’Donnell, who is self-funding the project, is in talks with the owners of the Abercairny Estate, near Crieff, about using its lochs, woodland, mansion house and walled garden for outdoor shoots.
But the plans, which were first mooted in 1999, have been left in limbo after Midlothian Council failed to make a decision.
Just before Christmas, the Scottish Government’s planning and appeals division submitted its report to officials. A decision is expected to be made in the coming weeks.
Willy Wands, chairman of the Association of Film and Television Practitioners Scotland, said the hold-up has cost Scotland the chance to host big budget productions.
He said: “We missed out on Game of Thrones. They came to Scotland first before they went anywhere near Ireland.
“The lack of a studio was absolutely a factor in Star Wars going to Ireland, not here.
“Tommy Gormley, the first assistant director, was one of my apprentices years ago and he was desperate to bring it here. They came to the UK for the tax incentives and Tommy said to them: London’s chock-a-block and expensive, let’s try to make it in Scotland.
“But they couldn’t find a place big enough to make it in because we didn’t have a studio.”
Top location scout David Taylor, who was instrumental in transforming Glasgow into downtown Philadelphia for zombie epic World War Z, said uncertainty over the future of the project needed to end.
“It has now been 13 months since this was called in,” he said. “And it was with the local authority for six months prior to that.
“Every day that goes by, Scotland is falling further behind in the big screen sector. Other nations are well ahead of us.
“The sector is in a huge boom period at the moment, funded by the UK tax incentives.”
Last week, it emerged that the third Marvel Avengers film will be shot in Glasgow, Edinburgh and the Highlands.
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “While a decision may have been anticipated in 2016, the developer had to submit significant further information, the final versions of which were not submitted until November 2016.
“Ministers received the report and recommendations from the independent reporter on this planning proposal on December 22, 2016.
“Ministers will now carefully consider the report in full and will publish their decision as soon as possible.”
