When it comes to making film and TV, the UK is a hotbed of talent, unrivalled craft and creative innovation.
We have one of the largest high-end TV and film production industries in Europe, and much of this is concentrated in and around London. It was worth £6.27 billion in 2022, and a whopping 86 per cent of it was investment from overseas. In the past decade, the UK creative industries as a whole have grown at 1.5 times that of the wider economy, contributing £108 billion (GVA) annually.
And in June this year, the government launched the Creative Industries Sector Vision – a plan to grow the creative industries by £50 billion and support a million more jobs by 2030, pledging £77 million in new funding.
Yet far from inspiring a tsunami of new talent, many young people feel a career in the screen arts is out of reach.
According to a recent survey, more than half of school leavers in the UK are interested in pursuing a career in film and TV, yet less than one in five considers it a realistic option. Add to this the cost-of-living crisis, and a career in film becomes a particularly remote prospect for those from lower socio-economic backgrounds – further exacerbating inequality in the sector.
At BAFTA we are redoubling our efforts to address socio-economic diversity in the screen arts. While you probably know us mostly for our awards, BAFTA is an arts charity with a remit to level the playing field for those in the film, games and television industries who face barriers or bias as a result of their background or life experience.
We do this by delivering learning and talent development programmes, scholarships and bursaries, mentoring and networking opportunities. We also cheerlead for the screen arts and advocate best practice.
Without funds, the simplest hurdles can seem insurmountable for anyone starting out. If you don’t have access to a car, you might not be able to get to a remote film set. Without a simple piece of kit you can’t realise your first short film or design your first game. So, this year BAFTA has tripled the number of bursaries we offer, providing financial assistance for driving licences, cameras or computers – the stepping stones to building a career.
We are also working with more than 20 luminaries in film and TV who come from working class backgrounds, such as director and writer Shane Meadows, writer Danny Brocklehurst, and casting director Aisha Bywaters, who share their own experiences and advise hirers on how to become more class aware.
At BAFTA, we now ask our members, 12,000 practitioners in film, games and television, to declare (anonymously) their socio-economic background so we can build an accurate picture of the industry and work on making it more representative of the population as a whole.
We are not alone. Broadcasters, producers, studios, streamers and other agencies are also seeking to address the inequalities and inequities in the screen industries. But these efforts are not helped by the downturn in production that has hit UK film and TV this year.
This summer we conducted a survey of BAFTA members. Two thirds of freelancers said they had less work than pre-pandemic and were living off savings. A third were thinking of leaving the industry altogether.
If the government is to succeed in its plan to grow the creative industries by £50 billion, and if the screen arts in Britain are to maintain that reputation as a hotbed of talent, we can ill-afford a brain drain that reduces the talent pool and the diversity of the people in it. We need a community of storytellers who not only reflect our society, we need the breadth and quality of the stories they bring to our screens.
Later this year the government will publish its Cultural Education Plan. An unwavering commitment to creative skills in education is key to establishing a talent pipeline for the future, and a commitment to work closely with industry, will be key to train and retain that talent pipeline – regardless of downturns and upticks in the wider economy. Long-term, unflinching commitment to creative skills in education and career-long learning.
If you’re heading to the cinema this week, you will be among the first to watch our new ad campaign fronted by BAFTA award-winning actor Micheal Ward. In it, he conveys a message that is fundamental to the health of the screen arts – that everyone deserves an opportunity to follow their creative spark. Talent is not determined by bank balance, where you come from, or what your parents do. Success shouldn’t be either.
