What could the woman who runs the sweetie shop in Balamory have in common with a young Scot with Down’s syndrome? And what connects a dimwitted cockney police inspector with the ruler of ancient Greece? The answers lie in the Bowmore Scottish Screen Awards, the most important competition in the domestic film business, in which you, the readers of The Sunday Times, choose the winners.

In this second week of nominations for the awards, we concentrate on the contribution of actors and actresses, in a year of great achievement for their profession.

Ever since Danny Boyle’s 1996 movie, Trainspotting, established the reputations of Ewan McGregor, Robert Carlyle and the rest of the cast, a string of Scottish actors have made their way into Hollywood productions and British films.

While the contribution of the men has been obvious, Scottish actresses have been less to the fore. Even in two notable recent Scottish films, principal female roles have gone to an Irish and an English woman, respectively Eva Birthistle in Ae Fond Kiss and Emily Mortimer in Dear Frankie.

And yet, paradoxically, the shortlist for best actress in this year’s Bowmore awards is probably the richest, most exciting and most diverse since the category was introduced four years ago.

Some of the more familiar faces, including the past winners Shirley Henderson and Laura Fraser, lost out this year to actresses who have been better known for their work in theatre or on television — if indeed they have been known at all. Think of Paula Sage in her first significant screen role, or the veteran soap actress Mary Riggans, who has been nominated at last for her work on a bigger screen.

And in an age, and a profession, that seems increasingly to celebrate youth for its own sake, it is heartening to see more mature actresses getting substantial roles in several films, though that is thanks largely to the contribution of just one scriptwriter — Andrea Gibb. Gibb wrote the screenplays for AfterLife and Dear Frankie, and created the characters played by four of the five best actress nominees.

If in some earlier years, the contribution of Scottish actresses to world cinema has been relatively limited, compiling a list of potential nominees in the Bowmore’s best actor category has never been a problem, at least in terms of sheer numbers. This year the committee entrusted with producing the nominations again were faced with the problem of who to leave out.

This year’s selection finds no room for such big talents as Robbie Coltrane (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Van Helsing) and Billy Connolly (Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events).

Indeed, such was the quality of the field that the nominations committee even had to omit James McAvoy, despite two excellent and very different performances in Wimbledon and Inside I’m Dancing.

The final shortlist recognises one newcomer, who had stardom thrust upon him; one late starter, who gave up law to pursue acting; two veterans of Trainspotting who have perhaps been a little overshadowed by McGregor and Carlyle in the past, but who have worked almost non-stop since that breakthrough movie; and at the other end of the spectrum of experience, the veteran actor and national treasure that is Brian Cox.

See the newspaper for the coupon to cast your vote postally this week, or vote online next week at www.timesonline.co.uk/scottish

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