BFI launches £500m programme to help British film

The BFI has announced details of its Film Forever programme, under which half a billion pounds will be invested in the UK film industry over the next five years.

The biggest proportion of the funding, more than 40%, will go towards education people about film and ensuring that UK audiences have more choice at the cinema.

About a third of the money will be spent on film-making — including investment in film development and production, investing in training and attracting international film-makers to work in the UK.

Much of the rest of the fund — which comes from Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the National Lottery and the BFI’s own earnings — will be spent on heritage, preserving and digitising ten thousand films.

The chairman of the BFI, Greg Dyke, said the investment would ensure that growth within the film industry continues to outstrip the economy as a while, and stressed that there would be a particular emphasis on supporting the industry outside London.

The BFI’s chief executive, Amanda Nevill, said the organisation was investing where it could make the most difference, to secure the industry for the future generation of audiences and the future generation of film-makers, while taking advantage of the opportunities presented by digital technologies.

As part of the Film Forever plan, the BFI has forged new partnerships with organisations including the Aardman animation studio, the Pinewood studio group, BAFTA, Samsung and the management consultants Accenture.

The programme follows eighteen months of consultation with film industry executives from the UK and across the world, from other cultural organisations, the public and the Government, prompted by Lord Smith’s Film Policy Review.

Eight road-shows will be held across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland for the BFI to give more details of its plans.

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