One of Hackney’s large cluster of film companies has found Backroads, a hard-hitting film on sex trafficking in the Cambridgeshire Fens, made by Mandrake Films of Dalston, has just been screened to great acclaim at the Curzon Cinema in
“We’re following up with "I'll Be Your Mirror", a film about women and body image for Current TV,” says producer Lucy Baxter. “It’s always an uphill struggle when you’re an independent, but we’ve got several documentary, drama and multimedia projects underway, including Israel’s Children, a story about young people in the region today, and another called Memories of a Gold Smuggler, for which we’re raising funding.”
Belfast-born Lucy first got involved with filmmaking at Amnesty International and a number of her documentaries have been nominated for BAFTA awards. A live broadcast of open-heart surgery for the Wellcome Trust is another recent breakthrough for the Kingsland High Street company.
“Mandrake is blazing a trail in cinemas and on the internet that other Hackney film makers can follow, but the credit crunch is making it very difficult to raise finance and credit for new movies,” says Kevin Davey at the Hackney Enterprise Network.
The network has recently been getting advice from film funding experts at the financial services company Grant Thornton, Film London and the UK Film Council to identify a way forward for Hackney’s independent film companies.
“Putting together the funding package for an independent film is a huge and complex exercise,” says Kevin Davey. “Small budget independent films are backed by private individuals and struggling producers, and they often apply to a combination of the UK Film Council, the BBC, Channel Four and regional film funds like Film London for a significant part of their budget. Pre-release sales, partnerships with production houses and DVD and online distributors also figure in the deal. A combination of a special film tax credit, worth 20% of the budget of a movie, along with the Enterprise Incentive Scheme and bank loans – if you can get them - make up the difference.”
The UK Film Council, which invests fifty million pounds a year in new projects, is currently taking applications from film companies. Every year it distributes around £27 million from the National Lottery and £27 million from the government to support script development, film production, short films, export and distribution, cinemas, and festivals. Recent successes backed by the UK Film Council include Control and This is
“A tax regulation which encouraged profitable firms to invest in film as a side effect was closed last year, but fortunately two hedge funds in the city have stepped up to replace them as private investors,” says Vince Holden, Film Council’s head of production finance. “This will help a few film makers putting together movies with budgets of two to four million pounds, but small companies are unlikely to feel the benefit. There’s still a real need for a smart lender in the sector, such as a specialist bank.”
“The market for independent film is growing as internet TV channels – which are crying out for good content - grow in number,” says Kevin Davey. “However these pay lower fees than the large distributors and broadcasters, only partly easing the pressure on small firms.”
A new market for film makers is being opened up by Digital Deli, a fair trade online distributor of independent films which is being assisted by the Innovatory on
“We’re really committed to the growth of the sector” says CEO Richard Ayers. “Our aim is to enable creative producers to exhibit their work in a virtual market place where they can sell movies and chat about their projects with people inside and outside their industry.”
Digital Deli sells hundreds of films online and takes a much smaller cut of revenues than larger initiatives like Joost and Hulu, which retain half of the income raised.
