Their first feature, Sarah's Room (then titled To Here Knows When) was screened at the Edinburgh Filmhouse Cinema via a collaboration with the independent short film night, Write-Shoot-Cut.
Sarah's Room was followed by three other Tartan Features Write-Shoot-Cut collaborations during 2014: Skeletons, Take It Back and Start All Over Again and A Practical Guide to a Spectacular Suicide.
This often includes creating guides for self sufficiency based on classic DIY music manifestos such as The KLF’s ‘How to Have a Number One he Easy Way’ and Scritti Politti’s ‘How to Make a Record’.
If you feel nobody’s listening there’s a clear alternative to do something on your own terms.” [10] The Tartan Features roster of films are numbered in the style of the independent record labels from which they take inspiration.
[11] A number of films under the Tartan Features banner have reached critical acclaim, including Big Gold Dream, receiving warm reviews[12][13] and plaudits in end-of-year lists[14] and the award-winning Where Do We Go From Here?
Bend Don't Break led to director Alex Harron receiving a BBC commission[17] for his next two films - The Racer[18] and The Boxer.
[20] It was voted 131 in Sight and Sounds Best Films of 2015 Poll [21] A self distributed DVD released through Rough Trade[22] and Love Music appeared in 2017.
A BBC 2 Screening led to a large amount of positive press in newspapers and online articles including Vice, Dazed and Pitchfork.
[26][27] Cherry Red Records released a 5-CD Box Set, entitled Big Gold Dreams that acted as a tie in with the film.
Andrew Marshall of Starburst Magazine wrote: “Death of a Vlogger is a sinister and compelling tale of how perception affects the nature of an observed reality, and an example of just how gripping a moviegoing experience can be crafted out of a simple idea with enough creativity and imagination.” [36] Rafael of slashfilm.com rated this film a 9/10 stating, "A twisted story of warped perceptions, megalomania, the victims in the middle of media manipulation and our own obsession with online cruelty that results in a breath of fresh air in an overcrowded genre" [37] The film is now available on Amazon Prime Far From the Apple Tree, received its premiere at the 2019 Manchester Film Festival [38] This was followed by a cinema run at the DCA in may of 2019 [39] Lead actress, Sorcha Groundsell found international fame in the Netflix series, The Innocents.
Vinyl Soundtrack by Rose McDowall and Shawn Pinchbeck released by Glass Modern Records Vinyl Soundtrack released by Trunk Records in 2019 [43] DVD released by Redemption Films in the UK and Kino Lorber in the US [44] Teenage Superstars received its Cinema Premiere in 2018 at the Glasgow Film Festival[45] Was part of the National Museum of Scotland's 2018 Rip it Up exhibition where it screened at Edinburgh's Filmhouse [46] Teenage Superstars has received generally positive reviews, including 4 out of 5 stars in both The List,[47] and The Skinny[48] with The Herald calling it "a real treat for music fans.
[54] Off the back of Anna and The Apocalypse John has been announced as the director of Lady Macbeth, a YA Musical produced by Channing Tatum.