Edinburgh based Cinetopia run by Amanda Rogers is coming under fire, as it has become public knowledge that her 3 outdoor screenings of the Scottish Classic “Local Hero” back in May could have cost the public purse as much as £750 per person to stage.
The screenings were funded by Screen Scotland, The National Lottery Film Hub Scotland and The Banff and Buchan Community Funds in May 2023. Rogers secured £15,600 of local community Funds to stage the 3 outdoor screenings and a £5,000 grant from Film Hub Scotland. It has been reported in the media that Rogers also could have received as much £125,000 from Screen Scotland, who have refused to confirm or deny this amount. At its best-case scenario, the 3 screenings attended by less than 200 people back in May, would have cost the public purse at least £103.00 a person but up to £750.
Cinetopia decided not to work in partnership with the already organised Local Hero Festival, a local community-based festival celebrating the iconic film’s 40th Anniversary. Rogers received all the public funding, while the festival was privately funded.
A catalogue of fundamental mistakes was made by Rogers with the name of her outdoor screenings changing four times and the Cinetopia name replaced by Cinescapes. Rogers made public announcements in late March in the Scottish Media about the outdoor screenings, but with no information available on her website or no tickets going on sale for 28 days after the media coverage leaving those interested hanging.
Andrew Mellon, 55, Local Hero Festival Director said “It was a shambles from the offset, Rogers has no idea how to run an event, why would you go public with nothing organised. That is a lot of public money for a select few to watch a movie, it’s a disgrace”.
Mellon also added “The Festival was banned from showing the Local Hero movie in our two screening rooms which were purpose built for the festival. It transpires that Rogers had complained to Park Circus, the films distributors, so we were told we could not show the film at all”.
Mellon is keen to hear was Screen Scotland will make public now the story is in the public domain.