In the shadow of a Welsh mountain cowers the remains of a disused lead mine, its dilapidated outbuildings and piles of scree a bleak reminder of the country's industrial past.

A few miles to the south-west, stands a shabby row of miners' terraced houses; while, some 80 miles further south, the ghostly ruins of a once-booming iron works totter against the sky.

The images - from Cwmystwyth, Pontrhydfendigaid and Ynyscedwyn, in Powys and Ceredigion - contrast starkly with the dramatic and picturesque beauty more commonly associated with the principality, and point instead to the grim reality of rural deprivation and despair.

Yet, in the wake of the highly-successful British films Trainspotting and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels - both of which relied on the gritty backdrops - such views are now being used to tempt movie moguls to the country.

Instead of relying on stock images of the Brecon Beacons or the Elan Valley, the Mid Wales Film Commission has included the likes of the disused mines, shabby houses and even a 1960s bungalow in a glossy brochure aimed at film directors.

The decision to include the sites among the 350 on offer seemed natural to Mike Wallwork, the commissioner.

"The inquiries we get are for a whole range of different locations and directors are just as likely to want to shoot a scene in an old mine or shabby terrace as they are on a stunning Welsh mountainside," he said. "Yes, mid Wales has some stunning landscapes - we've just had Martin Clunes filming for ITV in the Elan valley - but less attractive locations have just as much appeal."

The commissioner added that filming in gritty, industrial locations was not a new phenomenon in Wales: the 1959 classic Tiger Bay was filmed in the Cardiff docks, while many scenes for the 1996 cult film Twin Town were filmed around a rundown caravan in front of Port Talbot oil refinery.

But he added: "In television, in particular, directors are increasingly searching for less picturesque settings."

As for those who live in such areas, they welcomed the thought of Hollywood descending.

"We'd definitely welcome being put on the map," said Steven Earey, the landlord of the Red Lion, at Pontrhydfendigaid, the isolated village on the edge of the Cambrian mountains chosen by the commission for its miners' terraces. "But, I wouldn't say our village was the least bit shabby."