Student Scots steal show… again

Dan D Lion and Deadbeats has been nominated in the Best Entertainment category in the Scottish BAFTAs.

All I can say is: I told you so. In fact, I even predicted this back in November when I mentioned it in The Tab.

Painting the rise of the ‘I’m A Gardener’ parody by Deadloch and Dan D Lion, it has now gone on to achieve national success being nominated for the Best New Talent award in the Entertainment category at the Scottish BAFTAS.

The annual awards recognise and celebrate emerging screen talent from all over the country, providing up-and-coming practitioners with a platform to showcase their work to the wider industry.

The winners were unveiled at an awards ceremony at Òran Mór on Thursday 21 March. The ceremony was presented by Alan de Pellette, the acting director of BAFTA in Scotland.

The only down side was the end result, as ‘The State of Greenock’ – a 10-minute mockumentary set in the newly-independent state of Greenock in the year 2020 – pipped the famed gardener’s rap to the post and achieved the elusive prize.

Now I may be biased, but I reckon Felix Crammond is “a one-girl guy,” and he ain’t “got a bitch in the kitchen cooking shepherd’s pie.”

Looks at these guys mowing my lawn

Here’s another chance to see ‘I’m a Gardener,’ but this time it reveals some unseen footage from Tom Ross (aka Dan D Lion):

Take your seats, lads

The introduction of an Entertainment category at the Scottish BAFTAs was a first for the awards ceremony, and so was the new Sound Design Award, which underlines the promise of this production. Plans to perform at the 2013 Edinburgh Fringe festival now look like a realistic target.

Here’s a video of the winner, but it’s only a trailer. I wouldn’t want to bore with the full version:

Interestingly, the State of Greenock got a mention in the Scottish Sun, which mentioned that the creators of the fictional, independent state managed to produce such a great video on an impressive tight budget of £50. This is the lowest budget fabrication in its category.

Dan D Lion had this to say: “We know the truth, and the Scottish Sun should get its facts right. We only spent a fiver on ‘I’m A Gardener’, and that included buying two cheap-ass norms and a questionable turnip. Everything else was already on the farm.”

What do you think? Should the ‘I’m A Gardener’ parody have beaten the State of Greenock? If you think it should have, go to The Cumberland Arms on Thursday 28 March and judge it for yourself.