Part 2 and 3

Funding & SupportBy Myles Egan

What was the UK film council?

What do they do?

The UK Film Council (UKFC) was set up in 2000 by the Labour Government to develop and promote the film industry in the UK. It was constituted as a private company limited by guarantee, owned by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. It was funded through various sources including predominantly the National Lottery.

The UK Film Council aim to broaden the quality, range and ambition of film projects being developed in the UK. With £12 million of Lottery funding to invest over three years, the fund aimed to build a talent-driven home for writers, directors and producers. It helped filmmakers of all experience levels develop their ideas and screenplays into successful feature films. There were two funding programmes, one for first-time feature filmmakers and one for established filmmakers. The First Feature Film Development Programme aimed to identify and support emerging filmmakers (e.g. screenwriters, writer/directors and writer, director, producer teams) who had not made a feature film or who had not yet had a feature film released theatrically or broadcast on UK television. The fund also offered Signature Awards to help further encourage ambitious and original filmmakers and projects.

Funded films included Andrea Arnolds second feature film ‘Fish Tank’

How did they help short films and short film makers?

There are three funding programmes:

The First Feature Film Development Programme aimed to identify and support emerging filmmakers (e.g. screenwriters, writer/directors and writer, director, producer teams) who had not made a feature film or who had not yet had a feature film released theatrically or broadcast on UK television. The fund also offered Signature Awards to help further encourage ambitious and original filmmakers and projects.

The New Cinema Fund supported emerging talent and established filmmakers working outside the mainstream, focusing on the most innovative writing and the most gifted directors. The fund had £15 million of Lottery money to invest over three years and funded eight to ten feature films each year. It had a strong commitment to supporting work from minority ethnic filmmakers and encouraged the use of digital technology in the production, distribution and exhibition of films. It also supported over 100 short films each year through its short film schemes.

The Premiere Fund invested £8 million of Lottery funding per year into mainstream, commercially-driven films encouraging the involvement of British creative talent in a range of films to attract audiences the world over.

What was the position and role of the BFI prior to the creation of the film council? The BFI was introduced in 1933 and helped with funding etc. It has been around for far longer than UK Film Council as it is still very knew and was founded in 2000 by Labour, which took over funds and left the BFI in charge of film archives, schedule for National Film, education, Sight&Sound Magazine and The Museum of Moving Image Theatre. With the UK Film Council in charge, they attempted to make it more democratic and easier for shorts and the BFI was thought to be making feature films to artistically develop, but the two companies couldn’t agree and had mixed views on funding etc. and by 2011, the UK Film Council were taken over by BFI and therefore BFI re-received the responsibility back for the funds.

How has the position and role of the BFI changed since the recent government decision to dismantle the UK Film CouncilOn the 26th of July 2010 the Conservatives suggested that the UK Film Council should come to an end, and so on the 31st of March 2011, John Woodward, the Chief of the UK Film Council stepped down, which resulted in the UKFC shutting down and the BFI taking over.

In 1983 BFI received a Royal Charter (A formal document issued by a monarch as a patent granting the power to a corporation and is used to establish significant organizations). This was then brought up to date in 2000 and the newly-established UK Film Council were made responsible for providing the BFI’s annual Grant-in-aid. As an independent registered charity, the BFI is regulated by the Charity Commission and the Privy Council. When the BFI became in charge of the UK Film Council, it took control and lead to a small amount of people being made redundant.

What is the role and remit of the BFI?

The transfer of responsibility from the UK Film Council in 2011 left the BFI’s role and responsibilities as:

• Public Money – This is passed through the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Curing 2011-2012 the funding by the public made a total of

£20,000,000.• Commercial Activity – BFI London IMAX Theatre and the distribution of DVD’s.• Funding grant’s, sponsorship and donations – The National Lottery funded grants and

private sponsors.

The BFI has three different types of income:

BFI Roles:Distribution of all Lottery Funds for film – The UKFC would make the UK a global hub for film in the digital age compared to BFI who’s role was the production and development of the Film Fund. They’re given £15,000,000 a year to invest in development, production and completion of feature films.To support and assist film makers producing there film – In 2012 there was the BFI Shorts which Lighthouse was in charge of, although now is closed. However, in 2013 if you wanted to fund a short film, you could turn to ‘Creative England’, ‘Creative Scotland’, ‘Film Agency for Whales’, ‘Northern Ireland Screen’ or ‘Film London’.

In what respects and to what extent does the UK Film Council continue to exist as an institutional and cultural film body?After the UK Film Council shut down, a lot of the staff transferred to BFI as they were similar companies and due to them re-receiving responsibilities for funding, they would now have more vacancies within the company. This shows us to an extent that the UKFC is in some respects still exists but within the chambers of the BFI.

The policies within the UK Film Council are also very dominantly influential towards those of the BFI due to the government plans that install the organization.

Ed Vaizey announced “The BFI would take on the bulk of responsibilities previously handled by the outgoing UK Film Council.” This shows that although the new BFI leadership, the UK Film Council will remain true to the way in which it was run.

Noel Clark, an actor and director told the BBC “I’m very sad that they’re breaking down but the BFI is going to continue what they do” this tells us that to an extent the UKFC is still an institutional and cultural film body as it still has the same effect in the way it was run and therefore effects the same sorts of directors, artists, audiences etc.

What were the Regional Screen Agencies (RSAs) that Film Council funding was delivered through?

The UK Film Council funded 9 regional screen agencies due to its Regional Investment Fund for England. These were:

• EM Media – East Midlands• Film London – London

• Northern Film & Media – Newcastle• North West Vision & Media

• Screen East• Screen South – Folkestone

• Screen West Midlands• Screen Yorkshire – Leeds

• South West Screen

These all took part in helping provide and support within production, training, screen commissions, cinema exhibition, archives and education.

Other Funding Sources

Outside of the BFI there are numerous amounts of short film funds in the UK:

The British Film Council

The British Council Film Works with a worldwide network and a range of international partners to develop imaginative film projects, including organizing programmes of contemporary British films, advising on international events (festivals, seminars, master classes, workshops, UK/European film weeks, multi-arts festivals etc), and arranging for filmmakers and expert film industry specialists to represent the UK abroad.

They are committed to showcasing new UK talent for all audiences and operates a programme called the Short Support Scheme selecting new UK short films to promote at international festivals, and runs an associated Travel Grant fund launched in May 2012.

Charities are also a possible source for funding that are somehow linked to the goals/aim of your short film. As an example, the Wellcome Trust, one of the UK's largest medical research charity, has an Arts Awards which funds projects, as well as short films, that are inspired by biomedical science.

CineCrowd is a crowd-funding platform for feature films, animation films, documentaries and video clips, and welcomes all types of audiovisual projects. Over 80% of all CineCrowd projects are successful in finding financial support - more than on any other crowd funding platform.

CineCrowdIt is possible to gather funding from Local Councils who will put money towards short film making, especially if it is dealing with social exclusion or aids the local community in some way.