Regional Screen Scotland

What Regional Screen Scotland does

Regional Screen Scotland (RSS) is a Scottish not-for-profit company limited by guarantee and registered charity (SC039853), founded in 2008, headquartered in Edinburgh. It operates the Screen Machine, a 72-seat digital mobile cinema that tours to over 40 remote communities annually across Highland, Western Isles, Argyll & Bute, Moray, North Ayrshire and Orkney, with each visit lasting 2-4 days. The unit currently on tour is a leased Cinémobile from France-based Toutenkamion Group, deployed as a temporary replacement after Screen Machine 2 was retired in 2023, while a new permanent Screen Machine 3 is being built following a £1.49m fundraising campaign completed in December 2025 and due in service in autumn 2026.

Beyond mobile cinema delivery, RSS supports Scotland's wider community cinema sector via the Guide to Screening Films resource (co-developed with Cinema for All, Film Hub Scotland and Screen Scotland), the Mapping Scotland's Screen Community online search tool, the Go And See Fund for peer learning, and the Towards Universal Cinema accessibility initiative. The organisation also delivers fixed-term development programmes (e.g. A Cinema Near You, Now Showing) that have supported 117+ venues and received 165 expressions of interest. A small core team of 8 employees plus two full-time driver-operators and a network of 57 local ushers executes the model.

RSS's revenue model is grant-driven, not commercial: ticket sales cover only a portion of costs, with the balance made up by Creative Scotland Multi Year Funding (£410,000/year for 2025/26-2027/28, nearly double the prior Regular Funding), supplementary grants from Scottish Government, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, SSEN Transmission, charitable trusts, and public donations including a major gift from Sir Ewan and Lady Brown. The customer base is geographically dispersed rural and island communities, schools, community cinemas and film societies, and accessibility-focused audiences - with no single paying customer of material economic significance.

Name

Regional Screen Scotland

Legal name

Regional Screen Scotland

Website

https://regionalscreenscotland.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Regional Screen Scotland is a Scottish not-for-profit that tours a 72-seat digital mobile cinema (the Screen Machine) to over 40 remote Highland, island and Moray communities annually, while supporting community cinema development across Scotland through training, resources and funding programmes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Edinburgh

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Revenue from selling tickets to screenings at the Screen Machine mobile cinema and potentially other community cinema events.
2. Core Funding from Creative Scotland: Multi Year Funding of £410,000 per year for 2025/26, 2026/27, and 2027/28, representing a significant proportion of RSS running costs.
3. Public Donations and Fundraising: Public donations including major gift from Sir Ewan and Lady Brown (over £110k), plus trust and foundation grants.
4. Government and Public Grants: Scottish Government (£500k), SSEN Transmission Community Fund (£350k), Highlands and Islands Enterprise (£350k), Anne Duchess of Westminster's Fund (£150k), and other trusts and foundations (£35k) for Screen Machine replacement.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Regional Screen Scotland operates Scotland's touring mobile cinema (Screen Machine), a 72-seat air-conditioned digital cinema that travels to over 40 remote and rural communities across the Highlands, Islands, Moray, North Ayrshire and Orkney, bringing the latest film releases directly to areas without access to fixed cinema venues. The organisation also develops and supports community cinema initiatives, providing practical resources, training, and funding programmes for local cinemas and film exhibitors across Scotland.

Product overview

Regional Screen Scotland operates as a not-for-profit organization managing Scotland's mobile cinema services and supporting community cinema development. The core offering is the Screen Machine, a 72-seat digital mobile cinema touring to over 40 remote communities across the Highlands and Islands (currently operating via the leased Cinémobile while a new permanent vehicle is built). Supporting offerings include the Guide to Screening Films (practical resource for running community cinemas), Mapping Scotland's Screen Community (searchable database of Scottish exhibitors and venues), and various support programmes including A Cinema Near You (now concluded), Now Showing, and the Go And See Fund. The Towards Universal Cinema initiative represents the organization's strategic vision for inclusive cinema experiences.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 180,000 tickets sold to remote communities over 10 years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Film Hub ScotlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of eight Hubs set up across the UK by BFI to extend film choice and broaden audiences. Works closely with RSS to develop audiences for film across Scotland. Provides funding opportunities, screening programmes, training, networking events and audience research.
• Cinema for AllcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK's national organisation for support and development of volunteer-led cinema. RSS partners with them on resources including the Guide to Screening Films, and refers organisations seeking funding and support.
• Toutenkamion GroupcoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerFrance-based European leader for mobile unit design and manufacturing. Leased the Cinémobile to RSS as a temporary replacement after Screen Machine 2 was retired. Previously built Screen Machine 2. Working on modifications to enable access to more islands.
• Scotland's Towns PartnershipminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for advocacy and networking around town development, with cinema provision as a component of broader community development.
• Social Value LabminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlasgow-based research organisation that partnered with RSS in 2016 to undertake research into social values and impacts of local cinema and screen provision.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Toutenkamion Group: French designer/manufacturer of mobile units including the previous Screen Machine 2 and the leased Cinémobile. Supplier and OEM partner rather than a competitor, but uniquely relevant to RSS's mobile-cinema model.

Direct peers

• Cinema for All: UK's national organisation supporting volunteer-led and community cinema. Direct comparator to RSS's community cinema development work, sharing resources like the Guide to Screening Films and participating in the same Scottish screen ecosystem.
• Film Hub Scotland: One of eight BFI Film Audience Network hubs operating across the UK to extend film choice and develop audiences. Directly partners with RSS on programming, training, and funding within Scotland.
• Adventure Cinema: UK's largest open-air and touring cinema operator running pop-up screenings across the country. Comparable mobile/touring cinema delivery model but commercially oriented and event-based rather than community-subsidised.

Regional players

• Eden Court Highlands: Inverness-based arts and cinema venue that alongside Glasgow Film Theatre, Edinburgh's Centre for the Moving Image, and Dundee Contemporary Arts forms the original four city hubs that RSS was created to complement. Shared mission around regional film access in Scotland.
• Centre for the Moving Image (Edinburgh): Edinburgh-based operator of Filmhouse and Belmont cinema. Peer within the Scottish city-based hub network that RSS complements, sharing Creative Scotland and BFI funding relationships.
• Glasgow Film Theatre: Scotland's leading independent cinema and one of the four city-based hubs RSS was set up to complement. Comparable in mission around cultural film access and audience development but focused on a city centre catchment.

Emerging players

• The Luna Cinema: UK outdoor and pop-up cinema operator that brings big-screen film experiences to non-traditional venues. Comparable mobile/outdoor screen delivery model with commercial revenue mix, but focused on urban and suburban event cinema rather than remote community access.

Broad incumbents

• Tyneside Cinema: Heritage community cinema in Newcastle that RSS's interim CEO previously led. Comparable combination of heritage venue, audience development, and community cinema mission, but operates from a fixed building rather than a touring model.
• British Film Institute: UK national body for film, culture, and education that runs the Film Audience Network connecting RSS to its regional hubs. RSS's board chair is a BFI Executive Director, and BFI effectively sets the funding ecosystem RSS operates in.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/thescreenmachine
• Instagraminstagram.com/screenmachine
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/regional-screen-scotland

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Regional Screen Scotland