ARGYLL and Bute is becoming one of Scotland’s filming hotspots after enjoying one of its best years for film and television productions shooting in the area.

At last week’s meeting of the council’s Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee, head of economic development Fergus Murray confirmed that several TV productions and adverts, along with blockbuster movies, had filmed locally.

And it is hoped that the area’s use in those productions can encourage businesses to support their local economy.

Productions shot in Argyll and Bute include Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, as reported in last week’s Advertiser, along with another confidential movie set for release this summer.

Another series, thought to be a potential Netflix favourite, also filmed at Loch Lomond. The series is due for release in November 2018.

ITV drama The Loch and BBC series The Replacement filmed at Blairvadach and Loch Lomond respectively, while high-profile car and whisky adverts have also been shot in Argyll and Bute.

Mr Murray said: “We have actually just had one of the best film years. We have just put out details of Jurassic World and we have also had other successes.

“We have allowed this industry to grow and have had a lot of plaudits from the company operators.

“It is going to be critical for film and television in Scotland to potentially launch a dedicated studio, along with Channel 4’s decision on whether to relocate to Glasgow.”

The revelation took place during a debate on the potential setting up of the Argyll and Bute Business Group, a follow-on from the area’s economic forum.

But councillors acknowledged the difficulty in setting up such an organisation in Scotland’s second largest council area.

Mr Murray said: “There is a need for strong private sector involvement to move forward in order to demonstrate to funding partners that we have identified the priorities we can work on.

“It is a struggle to do that in terms of our geography and distance between our communities and the differences in economies and sectors.

“We are looking to establish a group to get responses from the private sector and Nicholas [Ferguson, economic forum chairman] has indicated that he is keen to ensure the momentum continues.”

Councillor Gary Mulvaney said: “It would be nice to have a particular focus on one chamber of commerce that covers an area, town or district but we’re not going to have that.

“We need to move on with it and not be too hard on ourselves. It needs to be driven, in some respects, by private sector businesses.”

And council leader Aileen Morton, of the Helensburgh Central ward, added: “We need to go to the businesses and ask if they want to be part of this. We need to be positive about it.”