K A M A L A    S A N T O S

             Kamala santos, Scriptwriter​

Projects 

The Waves
Audio Drama:  'Glory, Glory An Edinburgh Story'

THE WAVES is a series of five explosive 25-minute audio
dramas, exploring our age of so-called ‘culture war’ through
​the lens of the legacy of the British empire:
tamasha.org.uk/projects/the-waves/
​
​A Holy Mountain Production in association with Tamasha and supported by The Audio Content Fund.
The Woodcutters
​
TV Pilot

Thousands of young lumberjacks are sent from the Caribbean country of Belize to Scotland for warwork in WW2. The lumberjacks are welcomed by the villagers; however, the wealthy landowner is not happy about the new arrivals and intervenes to have the wartime volunteers sent back home.

Woodcutter Joseph McKay forms a close friendship with head-forester, Duncan Campbell, but a romance blossoms with his daughter Jenny, that will have an impact on all the young volunteers. 

Achievements: 
 "I literally just finished reading the full script. Totally enjoyed it!!!! It was an engaging read - full of humanity - overcoming challenge, love, pain and forgiveness " 
​- Kareem Ferguson (Belizean Actor) 
Saint Destiny
Screenplay in Development
​
'Saint Destiny', selected for development as part of Edinburgh Film Festival Script Starter programme.
Treefellers

Documentary
​
Screened at: Glasgow Film Festival 2021

A documentary film about 800 lumberjacks who came from the Caribbean to Scotland in 1941 to cut timber for the British war effort. 

The Woodcutters screenplay written by Kamala caught the attention of Robin MacPherson and they collaborated on the documentary, directed by Sana Bilgrami.

Treefellers was nominated for a Scottish Bafta and a follow up film is in production. 


Achievements: 
  • Scottish Bafta Nominee for best Documentary
  • Credited as Researcher: Kamala Maniam

​The Edinburgh Passion
Site-specific theatre
​
Inspired by medieval mystery plays, the Edinburgh Passion - where the audience follows the action through Princes Street Gardens - has been performed annually since 2004. 

​"Written as a fast paced retelling of what is always seen as a weighty historical story, Kamala has written it in such a way to bring so many colours to the characters and the story. It really is an excellent piece of work that engaged, enthralled, moved and challenged the thousands of people who saw the play...at the height of the production, it was performed in front of 4500 people on one day. A great testament to her work."  Director, Suzanne Lofthus, Cutting Edge Theatre.​
​
  Other screenplays

The place I was born

Drama Series Pilot - x 60 min
It's 2011, and champion surfer Reece lives on the Irish west coast with his aunt, where he moved after losing his parents and baby brother to an arson attack on their home in one of Limerick's housing projects. Reece has buried the past, but the appointment of detective Emily Chen threatens to uncover his demons. As Reece battles to be accepted among the big wave surf community, he has another battle to face - to challenge the police's assumption, that his dad being a black man and a drug dealer was what led to the murder of his family.

Developed for director Simon Brown (simonbrowndirector.com) following an earlier collaboration on drafts of his short film 'Firelight'.

Troubled hearts

Single Drama - x 30 min

Based on a story idea by the director Kothai Kanthan, Troubled Hearts examines the challenges of Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora living in London.

​The children of those who were forced to flee the anti-Tamil pogroms of the 70's and 80's are now young professionals caught between establishing themselves, and facing the realities of a brutal and bloody past that continues to overshadow their lives. 

The project was shelved following the Sri Lankan Civil War which resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Tamil's.
© 2022, Kamala J Santos
Photo used under Creative Commons from Gareth Lovering Photography