ArtWorks Scotland

The Shetland Folk Festival is one of the world's most exotic events with a hard earned reputation as the festival where nobody sleeps. Celebrating its 30th birthday, a hundred folk-musicians from as far afield as New York, Mumbai and Stockholm descend on the islands for four days and 200 performances, aided by 700 volunteers. With non-stop music from before the ferry leaves Aberdeen until the moment the visiting musicians return.

Bill Paterson is one of Britain's most sought-after character actors. Writer and director Bill Forsyth is a local hero with an international reputation. They made the movie Comfort and Joy together 27 years ago. ArtWorks Scotland brought them together to revisit some of the film's locations and swap stories of their remarkably similar childhoods.

Actor and director Peter Capaldi meets artist and playwright John Byrne at Glasgow School of Art, where both were once students. They talk about the artistic paths they have each followed. A conversation that takes in the work of John's 1960s alter-ego Patrick and his acclaimed dramas The Slab Boys trilogy and Tutti Frutti, as well as Peter's journey from playing the fresh-faced youth of Local Hero in 1983 to the foul-mouthed Malcolm Tucker in The Thick of It.

Two of Scotland's most successful photographers - Harry Benson from Glasgow and Albert Watson from Edinburgh - now live in New York. They spent a day together revealing the tricks of their trade and revisiting some of their best known images - Benson's photos of The Beatles at the peak of their fame and of Bobby Kennedy's assassination and Watson's portraits of Alfred Hitchcock, Mick Jagger and Mike Tyson.

ArtWorks Scotland marks the opening of Glasgow's new Riverside Museum by going behind the scenes to tell the story of its design, construction and fitting out. The 74 million pound project replaces the city's much-loved Museum of Transport and more than doubles the number of objects on display to 3,000. The spectacular building was designed by architect Zaha Hadid and the undulating steel and zinc roof proved an engineering challenge. Almost as tricky was bringing a 179 ton steam locomotive back from South Africa to take pride of place on the banks of the Clyde. The programme also includes the moving stories of the subway carriage, the wall of 40 cars and Cafe Rendezvous, a carefully restored 1930s Italian cafe.

In March, 2,000 bands descended on Austin, Texas hoping to make a splash at the world's largest music festival - South by Southwest. Among those keen to launch their careers in the USA were a clutch of Scottish acts including Rachel Sermanni, Unicorn Kid, Withered Hand and Admiral Fallow. ArtWorks Scotland followed them to the four-day festival to see if they had what it takes to crack America.

Scottish writers Mark Millar, Grant Morrison and Alan Grant are three of the biggest names in the world of comics. Between them they have created adventures for Batman, Superman, Judge Dredd and The X Men, and the plots of films such as Wanted and Kick Ass. ArtWorks Scotland tells the story of how Scots took over these American icons and also uncovers the world's first comic strip in Glasgow's Mitchell Library.

Gerry Rafferty, who died in January 2011, was one of Scotland's best loved singer/songwriters, famous around the world for hits such as Baker Street and Stuck in the Middle With You. This ArtWorks Scotland film, narrated by David Tennant, tells the story of Rafferty's life through his often autobiographical songs and includes contributions from Gerry's daughter Martha and brother Jim, friends and colleagues including Billy Connolly, John Byrne and Joe Egan, admirers such as Tom Robinson and La Roux, and words and music from Rafferty himself.