October 2020
Price: £95 PLUS VAT
Format: DOWNLOADABLE PDF
***Full-scale policy conference taking place online***
This conference examines the way forward for tackling significant challenges for the UK film and wider screen industries, with discussion expected on:
- COVID-19 - ways that screen industries are innovating in order to adapt to:
- social distancing - affecting productions and venues
- audiences - changes in demand and access to screens
- wider impact - on all aspects of the production and distribution cycles into the future
- Brexit - preparations for the end of the UK transition period
- the long term - prospects for financing and investment, supporting and developing a skilled workforce, and the UK’s international attractiveness as a filming and production destination
Key areas for discussion:
The impact of COVID-19
- keeping things going - how has the industry been tackling immediate challenges for sustaining employment across the workforce and individual segments, and organisations at all scales
- support going forward - priorities for seeing the sector and its component parts through the immediate and medium term, including further options for government
- support so far - assessing the effectiveness of support packages that have been introduced and their administration, including those from the Government, the BFI
Resumption of production activity
- progress and strategies
- support - the Film and TV Production Restart scheme and prospects for easing concerns around the UK’s suitability as a production base
- the work of the Broadcasting, Film and Production and Entertainment and Events working groups, set up by DCMS to develop guidance
- practicalities - what can be learned from how social distancing and other safety measures are being factored in to the range of screen working environments - as well as cinemas
The changing screen audience
- how to respond? - adapting to changing audiences preferences, particularly amongst young people
- business models and marketing - how strategies across the sector are adapting to changes established during the pandemic in films and audio-visual content consumption, with:
- online and on demand - the surge in online streaming and on-demand services and the rise in video on demand (VOD) and transaction video on demand (TVOD) release
- what’s the new normal? -the extent to which this trend will continue as more cinemas begin to reopen
- cinema - how the movie-going experience can adapt and communicate a unique appeal, and what is needed to fully establish cinemas as social and community hubs
The Government’s response and what it means for the UK screen industries
- the furlough scheme - the extent to which it has helped prevent job losses so far, and strategies for transition back to a fully working industry
- freelancers and other self-employed people - what particular support may be needed over the coming months
- the Government’s continuing role - priorities for policy to aid the sector move forward from the impact of the pandemic
The long-term outlook for the sector - skills, finance and competitiveness and the impact of Brexit
- meeting future skills requirements - including the role to be played by T Level qualifications and apprenticeships, as well as The Creative Careers Programme
- diversity - responding to the growing ethical, cultural and political imperatives for the UK’s screen sector and better enabling people from underrepresented groups to find employment
- investment - the future financing of UK productions and the outlook for start-ups and scale-ups in the sector
- international competitiveness - priorities and practicalities for maintaining the UK’s appeal as a large-budget production bases - including developing the physical studio facilities and other infrastructure, and the impact of immigration, taxation and trade policy
The agenda:
- Ensuring the UK film industry’s future after the pandemic
- How should the industry meet the key challenges it will face in the next year and beyond?
- Priorities for the sector’s economic recovery
- The long-term outlook - financing and investment, supporting and developing a skilled workforce, and the UK’s international attractiveness as a filming and production destination
Policy officials attending:
Our forums are known for attracting strong interest from policymakers and stakeholders.
This conference is no different. Places have been reserved by officials from the DCMS; the Department for International Trade; HM Revenue & Customs; the Intellectual Property Office; Ofcom; The Scottish Government and the Welsh Government.
This is a full-scale conference taking place online***
- full, four-hour programme including comfort breaks - you’ll also get a full recording to refer back to
- information-rich discussion involving key policymakers and stakeholders
- conference materials provided in advance, including speaker biographies
- speakers presenting via webcam, accompanied by slides if they wish, using the Cisco WebEx professional online conference platform (easy for delegates - we’ll provide full details)
- opportunities for live delegate questions and comments with all speakers
- a recording of the addresses, all slides cleared by speakers, and further materials, is made available to all delegates afterwards as a permanent record of the proceedings
- delegates are able to add their own written comments and articles following the conference, to be distributed to all attendees and more widely
- networking too - there will be opportunities for delegates to e-meet and interact - we’ll tell you how!
Full information and guidance on how to take part will be sent to delegates before the conference
