California Schemin’ did not screen on a winter’s day, but instead an early Spring evening in March to close the 2026 Glasgow Film Festival. And what better film to choose fo a festival that celebrates Scottish talent but also embraces international cinema, than a tale about two Scottish musicians who pretend to be American to make it in the business, directed by one of Scotland’s most successful actors.
A story about two white rappers from Dundee, Scotland? Really, what is this, Wellgate Mile? (That is a Dundee shopping centre reference for those non-Scots reading this).
The film begins with a title card that states that what you are about to watch is “based on a true lie”, and as the saying goes, “never let the truth get in the way of a good story…”
And so it went for Gavin Bain and Billy Boyd. Who, after being rejected at an audition for being cruelly dismissed as “the rapping Proclaimers”, decided that if the record labels are looking for the next “Eminem” or big American rapper, that is exactly what they would give them. Enter “Silibil & Brains” from California, the personas that they must eat, sleep, breathe, walk and talk as 24/7 until fame is theirs and they can come clean at the launch of their album.
It sounds too ridiculous to be true, but it is. As evidenced in the documentary The Great Hip Hop Hoax (currently available to watch on Prime).
It is an incredible story, but one that could not be executed today. Not with our lives being so prevalent on social media and the internet. A simple Google search these days would cause the house of cards to come tumbling down pretty quickly. Plus, Celtic rap is all the rage these days with Kneecap. Silibil & Brains were just ahead of the curve, and ahead of their time, sadly.
Silibil and Brains, aka Billy and Gavin, are portrayed by the dynamic duo of Samuel Bottomley and Seamus McLean Ross. Bottomley, effortlessly pulling double-duty on the accent front – delivering impeccable Scots plus American filtered through a Scottish tongue, has the necessary cockniness, charisma and swagger of the front man to lead the charge. While Ross has the more complex challenge of playing someone initially at odds with the spotlight, but is seduced by fame and fortune, leading him down a darker path where he no longer knows where Brains ends and Gavin begins… The danger is one could “lose yourself” in the role, as Eminem might say.
As the navigate the highs and lows of their plan, they are ably supported by Lucy Halliday, who is superb as Mary, Billy’s girlfriend and the only person anchoring them to the real world they increasingly become detached from. Hilarious and heartbreaking, it is a real star-making turn from the young actress.
And their fates all come to a head at the highlight of the film – an electric Barrowlands sequence that is, as is the parlance of our times, “pure dead brilliant”. It has an amazing energy that pulsates off the screen, and will have the whole auditorium jumping.
James McAvoy has an extended cameo as a foul-mouthed, combustible record executive, but the leading role he plays here is director. McAvoy has spoken out on the desire to see more films shine a spotlight on, or hold a mirror up to, Scotland as a whole. More importantly, however, he wanted to tell the stories of people like him, who grew up from a working class background… but in a way that is not all doom and gloom, alcoholism and heroin addiction, as many films have done in the past.
The film does not feel like the work of a first-time director. It is assured, confident storytelling, that grabs the audience right from the start and takes them on this insane journey. It is evident that he has studied, and learned from, directors he has worked with in the past, including Jon S. Baird, M. Night Shalayman, and Danny Boyle. He has a clear understanding of tone, and similar to his acting, effortlessly moves from comedy to drama and back again, often in the same scene, in order to give a voice to these people, and give their story the emotional weight it deserves.
It is an ode to the underdog nature of Scottish people and culture, a cautionary tale, a red flag against method acting, but most importantly, it is an incredibly fun ride. Trainspotting‘s iconic “It’s shite being Scottish” quote makes a pointed cameo in the form of street art at a Dundee bus stop at the start of the movie. However, it is painted over at the end, and deservedly so. Because California Schemin’ is proof that being Scottish, and the future of Scottish filmmaking, is fucking great!
California Schemin’ is in UK cinemas from April 10
Rating: 
Director: James McAvoy
Stars: Samuel Bottomley, Seamus McLean Ross, Lucy Halliday, James McAvoy
Runtime: 101 minutes
Country: UK
