The Film Council

Film Council
10 Little Portland Street
London
W1W 7JG

Tel 020 7861 7861
Fax 020 7861 7862

info@filmcouncil.org.uk
www.filmcouncil.org.uk

Contacts

Robert Jones - Premiere Production Fund read Netribution interview...
premiere@filmcouncil.org.uk

Paul Trijbits - New Cinema Fund read Netribution interview...
newcine@filmcouncil.org.uk

Jenny Borgars - Film Development Fund read Netribution interview...
development@filmcouncil.org.uk

Overview

Formed in April 2000, the Film Council is the strategic organisation responsible for encouraging both cultural and commercial film activities in the UK.

The long-term aim is to develop a sustainable UK film industry, with the centralised funding seen as a means of creating a business and industrial infrastructure able to fully support the UK's talent base.

The Film Council takes control of all direct government funding for film production from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and will absorb the funding activities of The Arts Council of England's Lottery Film Department, British Screen Finance, the BFI Production Department and the European Co-Production Fund. The emphasis is on well-targeted assistance in partnership with the private sector to produce popular and more profitable films. The three main funds established by the Film Council with a total annual budget of £20 million are the Development Fund, New Cinema Fund and Premiere Fund.

Development Fund

The Development Fund allocates £5 million a year to support the development of high quality, innovative and commercially attractive screenplays aimed at UK and international audiences.

Production companies and individuals, such as writers, producers and directors, may apply for funds to cover development related costs such as writer and producer fees, research costs, script editors, reasonable overhead costs and the creation of a funding "package" to assist in sourcing funds from potential financiers. The Fund may fully fund the development budget of certain projects, but will normally expect a producer to contribute either directly or by sourcing other development funding. Contributions in kind such as a producer's indirect costs or time spent on the project may be considered at the Fund's discretion.

Agreed funds are advanced in stages with the Fund given the right to reject a project's second or subsequent funding at each review. The advance is typically in the form of an investment recouped with a 50% premium on the first day of principal photography. In addition to recoupment the Fund requires a profit participation in projects which convert into productions usually payable from the producer's share of net profits.

Until advances are recouped the Film Council will require a proportionate ownership in the copyright and other rights in the development work. If the Film Council declines to invest further in a project all rights revert to the producer after five years, subject to the recoupment and a profit share if a production is subsequently produced. In keeping with the aim of creating a sustainable UK film industry half of the premium paid by a producer is retained for up to a year as a credit towards the producer's contribution to future Development Fund applications. read Netribution interview...

New Cinema Fund

The New Cinema Fund manages an annual budget of £5 million to support radical and innovative filmmakers, particularly projects from new talent. Productions can be of any genre including thrillers, sci-fi, horror, drama and documentaries and an emphasis is to be placed on projects making use of new electronic production technologies.

Production companies that apply will need to demonstrate the ability to realise a project in terms of its creative direction and in its financing, distribution and marketing.

The Fund normally contributes 15% to 50% of a project's budget by way of investment, with a higher contribution possible if a project is a low budget digital production. Recoupment of the investment is generally pro rata and pari passu with other equity investors, including in most cases advances from banks or a sales agent. A profit share in line with the Fund's participation is also required.

Once a project has provisional approval for funding a commitment may be given for a set period in which the producer can finalise all other finance. The Fund will assist a producer in raising further funds including liaising with public film funds outside of the UK. In the event that the Fund is interested in a project but believes further development is required before a decision can be made the project can be refereed to the Development Fund. If such a referral is successful the New Cinema Fund will reconsider a fully developed project. read Netribution interview...

Premiere Production Fund

A budget of £10 million a year is managed by the Premiere Fund to facilitate the production of popular mainstream British films. Applications must be feature length theatrical films for commercial exploitation and are assessed on creative merit and audience potential. An assessment is also made on the likelihood of recoupment of an investment and potential profits based on revenue projections of the entire package brought to the Fund. It is generally expected that a producer has secured or is in the advanced stage of securing a director and principal cast as part of this package.

Producers are encouraged to approach the Fund at an early stage, preferably before negotiations commence with potential financing and distribution partners in order to [why?]. Normally the Fund expects a project to have secured distribution in the UK and internationally and representation by a sales agent before funds are offered. However, the need is recognised in offering funding to productions at an early stage in the financing process to enable the producer to lever better terms from the private sector to complete the financing package. A conditional commitment to offer funds can therefore be made for a fixed period subject to quarterly reviews.

Production companies that apply will need to demonstrate the ability to realise a project in terms of its creative direction and in its financing, distribution and marketing. In the event that the Fund is interested in a project but believes further development is required before a decision can be made the project can be refereed to the Development Fund. If such a referral is successful the Premiere Fund will reconsider a fully developed project. read Netribution interview...

First Movies

A new Lottery backed programme will commence in 2001 with a budget of £1 million to provide grants to hundreds of low budget short films by children and young people to be produced with new technology. The scheme offers an opportunity to learn about filmmaking and develop creative talents. The scheme will operate on a regional basis and a showcase will be developed for the best films

Training

The Film Council is committed to investing in training and development on a larger scale than has been seen from any film-related government body. The strategy is about laying foundations for a film industry that will last for generations, not just until the end of a financial year or a term of government. The level of professionalism and expertise of people working in the UK film industry has long been acknowledged but a number of priority areas where training needed to be stepped up were identified by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport Film Policy Review Group (1997/98). Since then training for craftspeople, production accountants, health and safety executives has since been successfully addressed by Skillset, the National Training Organisation for film, broadcast, video and interactive media with money generated by the industry-backed Skills Investment Fund (SIF).

Two key priority areas for training, however, fall outside of the SIF:

• training for scriptwriters, script editors and development executives; and
• training for producers, business executives and distributors.

The Film Council’s Training Fund with £1 million a year of Lottery funding is a new resource for the industry. It is targeting these two key under funded areas so that scriptwriters, readers and development executives produce stronger scripts to offer to the industry; and producers and production/distribution executives can gain the essential professional skills to build stronger companies, make better deals and so on.

In order to broaden access to training, the fund is focused on enabling people who might be excluded from training opportunities because of the financial outlays involved. Its Training Bursary Scheme provides 100 bursaries a year to film producers and writers to attend European training courses and in the first year has supported attendance at EAVE, Arista, Moonstone, EURODOC, Strategics 2001, SAGA, Film Business School, MEGA Media, The Television Business School, Digital Media Business School, Sources and Sources 2, From Paper to Screen and North by Northwest.

Script development initiatives supported by the Training Fund are designed to meet the differing needs and levels of experience of individuals, although are largely geared towards those who already have experience but who are looking to develop new skills through:

• conversion courses to teach novelists or playwrights to adapt their skills to feature film writing;
• masterclasses aimed at experienced screenwriters;
• an internship programme for screenwriters and development executives;
• bursaries for students attending post-graduate screenwriting courses; and
• forums which promote discussion of issues within the industry.

Project development workshops supported by the Training Fund provide training for feature film writers with active projects to develop and allows them to gain experience in delivering screenplays capable of attracting finance for production. Workshops supported by the Training fund include:

• Arista
• Draft Zero
• First Film Foundation – Yorkshire First Feedback
• Lighthouse
• Moonstone
• National Short Course Training Programme (NSCTP)
• North by Northwest
• Performing Arts Labs
• The Script Factory

Short courses for script readers supported by the fund aim to improve the analytical and report writing skills of those offering feedback to writers - script readers. Course content includes film genres, story structure and how to complete a script report with emphasis on creative and commercial criteria.

Short courses for development executives supported by the fund provide an entry route into the complexities of development and a range of skills training for development executives - from script editors and script executives to senior heads of development and producers. The courses concentrate on working with various genres, the development of low to high budget projects and developing screenplays based on another source.

For further information contact:
Helen Bagnall
Head of Training
FILM COUNCIL
10 Little Portland Street
London W1W 7JG
T: 020 7861 7861