A YouTube series about Edinburgh gangsters has explored the war on drugs on one of the city's roughest housing schemes.
Filmmaker Garry Fraser, 44, who grew up in the capital's Muirhouse, filmed and produced Supply & Demand using non-actors who have experienced trauma in their life - whether as ex-veterans or martial artists from economically challenged backgrounds. The project is based on a family that is torn apart by addiction and involvement in the in international drugs trade.
With a strong focus on Scotland's war on drugs, the series delves into real-life stories of those caught up in the illegal narcotics trade.
Garry, who is a former heroin addict and double BAFTA winner, told Edinburgh Live: “The war on drugs is something that can evoke many different images and emotions about the characters who might be involved in this complicated, contentious issue. Very rarely the desire for change is explored, or the abuse of power and the information network linked to deprived Scottish communities examined in-depth.
“In Supply & Demand, the for change is the common thread which binds our characters together. Told from the perspective of a broken, grieving family, this often-unexamined front line gives our intertwining plots a coherent dramatic structure, accompanied by original, intoxicating, local music that underscores the gritty tone.
“This authenticity shines through on screen as together, we tackle themes of what masculinity means in the modern world, alcoholism, drug addiction, family breakdowns, PTSD, and the constant strain of living under regular abuses of power from the people who are ostensibly there to protect us – the police.”
Gary says there is a lack of storytelling from the perspective of working class people in Edinburgh. He argues stories depict drug addict mums or down-and-out drug dealer villains hell-bent on destroying their community - when in reality the stories in schemes are often more complex and diverse.
He continued: “I don’t think there has been a film made like this before in Edinburgh. As a screenwriter I have had to research our criminal underworld past and I was amazed to discover that we have had foreign mafia involvement in schemes like Pilton in the past.
“We stay in a country where an addict dies every seven hours but where is the media telling the story from their perspective? There is a crazy inequality when it comes to life in Edinburgh and Scotland as a whole."
The premise of the series follows a character Frank who has just returned from a tour with the British Army in Iraq, only to discover his cousin Charlie is heavily involved with high level drug dealing. Frank is recruited by MI5 to infiltrate and unravel his cousin's enterprise.
Garry says that his filming in the capital's Muirhouse, Pilton, Granton and Leith was met with reception from the local community. The Muirhouse father-of-five added that local businesses were always up for offering their shops as sets. But on one occasion, this sparked a response from local police.
He said: "A big thing was turning the schemes into a filming location. A shopkeeper offered us his shop to film a scene where someone was brandishing a machete in a robbery.
“It caused a stir and for a minute, we thought we were getting charged with brandishing a weapon in public. But a senior officer listened to the shopkeeper who backed our claim that it was a live film set - art had taken over life in the community.
“When people are struggling in poverty there is a lot of negativity and self defeat. This is not helped by the portrayal of working class culture in our media.
“A large part of making Supply & Demand was to bring confidence to those living in schemes and to dispel a lot of the self defeating lack of empowerment. We wanted to show the empathy and complex nature of life on a housing estate.”
Since the series launched on Wednesday it has had almost 10,000 views. They sold out an Odeon cinema as well as Summerhall when showing the premiere of the series.
Garry, who is father to Gary J 20, Billy 16, Destiny 13, Faith nine, Lee four weeks and boyfriend to Xanthia, says he has not received national funding for the series and as a result, he is trying to fundraise to continue the project.
If you would like to watch the first episode you can do so above via YouTube. To support their fundraising efforts, click here.
View the series here.
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