The art of making a riveting movie

IT was supposed to be a film about a tour. But after director Paul Fegan witnessed a row between Aidan Moffat – former frontman of the band Arab Strap – and Scots folk legend Sheila Stewart, he smartly scrapped that idea.

Instead, Where You’re Meant To Be became a gallus inquiry into Scottish culture and the clash over its preservation and evolution.

Aidan wants to reinterpret Scottish folk songs by Pogueing up them into mordant urban ballads.

In the film, the singersongwriter hopes this will impress Sheila. It doesn’t. Sheila, 79, looks like Boudicca, and early on we see her skin and gut a rabbit. She does much the same to Aidan after he sings his revamped version of her Parting Song in the car.

‘You’ve blootered the context,’ says Sheila – and she’s right: Aidan doesn’t understand that the central metaphor is about dying. The tensions between Sheila and Aidan go deeper than simply changing lyrics; it’s about respecting an art form from a different era. Mess with the core of the songs and you disregard what they represent.

You might not agree with Aidan, but you can admire his lack of vanity.

When he plays his repurposed songs to islanders on Lewis, the film shows grimaces of disgust that are laugh-out-loud funny.

Yet you’re also cheered when he does, eventually, score some success with an audience outwith his usual fanbase.

Where You’re Meant to Be is pretty great: it has Scots talking about their culture as if it is alive and important to them. It has a version of Will Ye Go, Lassie, Go? that reduces an old man to tears. It also contains some very creative swearing. It is in cinemas this weekend: go see!