Scotland has been reaping the benefits of a UK-wide boom in film making - according to new figures.

The British Film Commission has completed research which showed that investment in movies and television productions soared by around 35% last year.

But the body charged with promoting the industry north of the border has called for a better deal from the UK Government to ensure the success story continues.

The commission figures revealed that �570m was spent on movies and filmed TV productions made in the UK in 1999 - almost �150m more than the previous year's total.

Scottish Screen said it was due to finalise its own figures within the next fortnight.

However, it has already indicated that spending in Scotland reached unprecedented levels - outstripping even the 1995 peak when Braveheart and Rob Roy were both being filmed in Scotland.

Scottish Screen pointed out that the results were achieved despite the fact that the strength of the pound against the dollar did not help the industry's ability to compete on the world stage.

It has now joined others in calling for the government to create a level playing field by offering film-makers further tax breaks to bring their productions to Scotland and create opportunities for other recent blockbusters like Trainspotting.

Investment in the film industry was given a boost at the end of last year when a Glasgow developer announced plans to build a �255m complex in the Perthshire countryside.

It will include everything a typical American film-maker requires - hotels, shops, a golf course and a state-of-the-art studio.

There are other similar developments in the pipeline for Edinburgh and Inverness.

And Scottish Screen is still quietly backing plans for a publicly-funded studio in Glasgow.