A Future For British Film
June 1, 2012The economic importance of our film industry has long been recognised and the Parliamentary Information Office of the Parliamentary Yearbook is currently following closely progress in the business for a major feature in the next edition
In
May 2011 Lord Smith of Finsbury was asked by the Minister for Culture,
Communications and the Creative Industries, Ed Vaizey MP, to lead an
eight-strong independent Panel of film industry experts in reviewing the
Government’s film policy. The Panel was asked to identify barriers to
growth in the British film industry.
The Panel received over 300
online submissions of evidence and met with a comprehensive mix of
industry administrators and practitioners from across the UK. The
Review Report “A Future For British Film - It begins with the audience…”
was published in January 2012 and was universally welcomed by
Government, across industry and by the UK Government’s new lead agency
for film, the British Film Institute (BFI).
The Report contains
wide ranging recommendations, many of which are for the BFI, some for
industry and others for Government, but all of which aim to deliver
policies to enable the industry to reach a position of sustained success
for British filmmaking.
Publishing the Government’s response to
the review earlier this month, Culture Minister Ed Vaizey announced a
package of measures to strengthen the UK film industry.
The
majority of the review’s recommendations are directed at the BFI, who
today also revealed their Future Plan consultation, which sets out how
they propose to go about implementing the independent panel’s findings.
Mr Vaizey said:
“The
UK film industry is a real success story and I want it to thrive and
grow. Economically and culturally British film makes a great
contribution and it’s vital that we make the most of the very real
opportunity for economic growth it offers.
“Chris Smith’s
comprehensive review made practical and innovative recommendations. I’m
pleased that Government and industry can sign up to much of this
straight away. Along with the BFI, we’re committing to action that will
not only drive and encourage investment in British films but will also
develop and nurture the next generation of British film makers.”
The review made 56 recommendations to Government, industry and the BFI. Key measures include:
A new funding approach
The
review recommended that the BFI introduce a new funding scheme that
returns development funding back to companies that achieved box office
success, to be reinvested in future films.
The Government fully
endorses this approach, which will incentivise and reward success and
help build sustainable production companies. To achieve this, the BFI
will work with film makers, sales agents and investors to develop these
funding mechanisms.
Increased funding for British Film Commission
The
British Film Commission (BFC) is central to the drive for international
investment in UK film, and in 2011 over £1 billion was invested in the
industry from abroad. The panel was clear that a successful
international strategy needs an effectively funded BFC.
The
input of the BFI, UKTI, the British Council, Film London and other
public and private partners will be crucial in working with the BFC to
this end.
The Government has today announced that the BFC will
enter into a strategic partnership with UKTI and BFI. Along with
contributions from industry, this will provide an additional £400,000 to
the BFC's budget and provide a huge boost to the global impact of the
UK film industry.
Education & Skills
Also
recommended in the review is a new approach to film education which
brings together making, seeing and learning about film. Led by the BFI,
this would be available in every school across the UK, giving easy
access to learning materials, resources and information.
Government
is committed to creating a new vision for film education and the BFI
has already made progress in this area. This recommendation echoes the
findings from the recent review of Cultural Education, following which
the Department of Education announced a £3 million investment to enable a
new unified body for film education to identify and develop young film
makers.
Last year, the Government made the BFI the lead body for
film in the UK and the review’s recommendations place considerable
emphasis on the new role and status of the BFI.
The BFI will
lead on implementing the majority of the recommendations, including
funding, film export and digital readiness and will work collaboratively
with Government, industry and audiences.
Government welcomes
the BFI’s Future Plan consultation which sets out how the organisation
intends to approach the challenges the review makes and encourages all
interested parties to take part and ensure their views are heard.
We
shall be adding to the article as there are further developments and
any changes to the plans will be reflected in the content. The full
report will be published in print and online in the next edition of the Parliamentary Yearbook.
This was submitted by the Parliamentary Information Office. For more information visit Parliamentary Information Office.
Posted by Parliamentary Information Office. Posted In : Parliamentary Information Office