2024 has been a year of growth for the Film Skills Fund. Since April, the number of productions contributing to the Film Skills Fund has increased by 37% over the whole 23/24 figure. The number of productions contributing the Fund cap has grown, as have the number of documentary features who are now more aware of the benefits they can derive via our programmes. This increase in contributing productions – and amount that they are paying in – has resulted in a financial uplift of almost 100% on the total contributions from the 2023/24 period, growing from £850,000 in the whole of 23/24 to £1.6m in the 24/25 year-to-date.
These funds ultimately result in better and more varied support for the sectors’ workforce, enabling the Fund to reinvest in dedicated training that creates opportunities for career entry and progression across all departments. This has given invaluable opportunities for those at all levels across a range of departments and roles.
New entrants were once again invited to apply for the flagship Trainee Finder programme where this year, the evolved programme saw the Fund join forces with the HETV Skills Fund to offer placements in both film and TV productions, offering improved flexibility to trainees and responding to the workforce’s trend of moving more freely between the two.
Following its Fund launch in 2023, Make a Move offered more mid-level crew members the opportunity to further develop their careers through supervised placements and vital experience at a more senior level across productions.
The Fund also developed three training programmes geared towards the professional development of producers. BIFA Springboard: Producers launched in May and supports producers by offering training, mentoring and networking as they work on their second feature. Producing Truth: for UK documentary feature producers, delivered by Doc Society, focused on building core production and business skills, confidence and a support network for independent producers working on documentaries outside of commercial structures, unscripted or factual TV formats. A current programme, First-time Feature Producers, is run by Mission Accomplished and aimed at mid-level producers with experience in scripted film/television and are aiming to produce feature films in excess of £500k. The programme covers feature development, pitching, packaging and raising finance, leading and managing and sales and distribution – to name a few!
It has also funded several courses to address the resurgence of 8mm, 16mm, 35mm, 65/70mm film. Working on Physical Celluloid Film, Physical Celluloid Refresher for the Camera Department and Working on Physical Celluloid for the Production Office were all successfully delivered by the Pipeline, in partnership with Kodak and Pinewood Studios.
Collaboration with the HETV Skills Fund led to six further courses, specialising in areas including production accounting, art department dressing, departmental budgeting, VP supervision and Inside Pictures 2025, an international film and television business development programme, delivered by the National Film and Television School.
In a year book-ended by awards, productions that contributed to the Fund were heavily rewarded at both the BAFTAs and the BIFAs, a heartening endorsement of the hard work and international appeal of the films being made by the talent here in the UK.
This was echoed in the selection of titles at the London and Cannes Film festivals, the latter of which saw members of the team attend for three days, based at the UK Pavilion, where they promoted the Film Skills Fund, deepening relationships with producers, distributors and crew shooting in the UK.
The Fund continues to build on the number of events and festivals it support in the nations, including The Glasgow Film Festival, Docs Ireland and, in September, the first Film Skills Council Meeting travelled to Scotland, followed by a dedicated Networking event.
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