HE IS little known in his home country, but the Scot credited with saving America’s buffalo from being hunted to extinction is now the subject of an award-winning film.

The Buffalo King tells the tale of James “Scotty” Philip, who was born in Dallas, Moray, in 1858. One of ten siblings, he emigrated to the US in 1874 aged 15 in search of adventure.

Writer and director Justin Koehler grew up near Philip, South Dakota, a town named after the Scot. “I grew up 20 minutes from that town and I had no idea who Scotty Philip was, which was kind of embarrassing. How could I come from South Dakota and not know who he was?” he said.

“He should be a South Dakota hero, if not a North American hero. But this encouraged me to tackle this story and get it out there the way it should be.”...