Scottish creative projects receive £1m funding boost

Accomplished game developer James Muirhead is fusing gaming and Gaelic through Grease Trap ‘99, a two-hour horror experience set in a seaside village. Voiced entirely in Scottish Gaelic, the game follows a chip shop worker who uncovers a bizarre new menu item that soon consumes the whole town with an insatiable hunger. 

Development will focus on completing a polished demo to submit and showcase at Scottish and UK games festivals, followed by a full commercial release this Summer. 

Early prototype screenshot of Grease Trap ‘99. Photo by James Muirhead. 

James Muirhead, Developer of Grease Trap ‘99 said: “Funding from Creative Scotland has allowed me to turn what was a part-time passion project into a full-time production. It means I can dedicate proper time to learning Gaelic, including attending in-person classes, and fairly compensate the talented translators and voice actors I’m collaborating with.” 

Female Funk Fruition’s monthly dance workshops are set to return, offering fresh opportunities for people to explore the roots of funk and hip-hop. Led by Scottish hip-hop veterans Nadia “Funk Forever” Sewnauth and Shelltoe Mel, the sessions are targeted primarily at female and non-binary participants and the latest round of workshops will introduce budding dancers to the core funk styles - Popping, Locking and Freestyle Rocking. 

The initiative will also feature a pop-up exhibition charting the history of hip-hop dance from a female perspective. Mel will collaborate with visual artist Pearl Kinnear to envisage an immersive display drawn from her personal archive, including film footage, fashion pieces and footwear, books, magazines and photos. 

Female Funk Fruition. Photo by Martin Windebank. 

Nadia Sewnauth, Producer and Dance Artist at Female Funk Fruition said: “Accessing funding to move forward with our Female Funk Fruition project is so important for Mel and myself as artists. The knowledge we have gained over decades of immersing ourselves in Hip Hop culture would slowly fade away if we did not have this opportunity to share our passion and be recognised for our work.  

“We have built a close-knit community of women and we look forward to building on the foundations of Female Funk Fruition to create more art which we can share with our audiences this year through classes, performances and exhibition”. 

Sanctuary Queer Arts CIC is turning to inventive audio storytelling to spotlight the often overlooked legacy of queer activist George Cecil Ives. Their upcoming project, produced by a queer-led creative team, The Order of Chaeronea: A Secret Queer Audio Musical, revisits the clandestine late-Victorian society led by Ives, that was dedicated to decriminalising homosexuality. 

Sanctuary Queer Arts is developing an eight-episode audio-drama series with an accompanying 16-song original soundtrack, a ticketed launch event and a dedicated education and heritage resource. In collaboration with dynamic audio producers Tin Can Audio, the collective aims to bring Ives’ story to life with authenticity, imagination and accessibility, offering a narrative of hope and resilience to contemporary audiences. 

Lead Artist Jonathan O’Neill. Photo by Alastair More. 

Jonathan O’Neill, Lead Artist at Sanctuary Queer Arts said: “Ives' collection, held in the US, is a massive untapped document into queer British life in the late-Victorian era and I feel lucky to be supported by the Sanctuary team and our other project partners in researching and realising this multi-faceted project.” 

Commenting on December’s Open Fund awards, Paul Burns, Interim Director of Arts at Creative Scotland said: “These projects highlight the breadth of imagination and ambition driving Scotland’s arts sector. Supported by The National Lottery and the Scottish Government, creators across the country are pushing into new territory - from celebrating Scots Gaelic through gaming, to expanding opportunities in funk and hip-hop dance, to shining a light on the remarkable story of George Cecil Ives. This funding helps ensure that diverse voices and bold ideas continue to thrive.” 

You can find the full list of awards in January on our website. 

ENDS