Annual figures released today by Bristol Film Office, which turns 15 this month, reflect another healthy year for film and TV production in the city in 2017-18, with £15.2 million inward investment generated towards Bristol’s economy and a 10% rise in recorded filming days.
In a year that saw 383 productions issued with permits to film in the city, Bristol Film Office recorded 1141 filming days at Bristol locations and/or at The Bottle Yard Studios.
Here at The Bottle Yard, we estimate that for every ‘broadcast hour’ of on-screen drama made at the Studios last year, 14 FTE jobs were created. A total of 470 FTE jobs is estimated to have been generated by all productions (including drama and entertainment) and tenant businesses at the Studios in 2017-18.
Founded in 2003 with the mission to “attract, assist and provide business development opportunities for the moving image industry for the benefit of the city’s economy”, Bristol Film Office has been facilitating TV & film productions in the city for 15 years. In this time its operations have generated more than £1.4 million of income for Bristol City Council through filming permits and charges and, in partnership with The Bottle Yard Studios, it has assisted TV & film production worth more than £235 million of inward investment for the city, an average total of £15.8 million per year.
Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol, said: “The continuing success of Bristol Film Office and The Bottle Yard Studios in attracting film and TV productions is a major factor behind securing the city’s status as a UNESCO City of Film. Our international reputation as a centre for film is one that is based on developing strong partnerships across the sector to deliver high quality training, develop sought after skills and attract a diverse talent pool to suit the needs of productions large and small. As those partnerships grow and we continue to better connect our world class universities with innovative production companies and effective training programmes, we hope to grow this sector even further to deliver greater benefit to the city and its communities.”
Bristol Film Office’s Natalie Moore added: “As we celebrate 15 years of promoting Bristol as a film-friendly city, we’re delighted to look back on another strong year for TV & film production. £15.2 million is a significant total and the 10% rise in filming days shows that Bristol is more than maintaining its popularity as a leading filming destination outside London. The fact that we can host four major features and ten TV productions in one year is proof that Bristol does filming really, really well.”
“Over the past 15 years the Film Office has worked with homegrown and visiting productions across Bristol and in that time the local industry has grown in both size and reputation. We’ve witnessed milestones along the way – the opening of The Bottle Yard in 2010 and Bristol achieving UNESCO City of Film status last year are just two that stand out – but what has remained at the heart of our work is a clear understanding of how beneficial filming is to Bristol, both economically and culturally. We look forward to continuing our work over the coming years to keep Bristol at the forefront of producers’ minds when they’re considering their next shoot. Right now our armoury is stronger than ever; our track-record, the versatility of our locations, the appeal of The Bottle Yard Studios and the expertise of our crew base, facilities companies and post production sector, all go together to form a very competitive package.”
Click here to read Bristol Film Office’s full review of 2017-18 film and TV production in the city. Titles made at The Bottle Yard Studios included Iain Morris’s The Festival, Neil Marshall’s Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen, Poldark (BBC One), Fortitude (Sky Atlantic), The Crystal Maze (Channel 4), Tipping Point & Tipping Point Lucky Stars (ITV), Andy’s Safari Adventures (CBeebies), Steve Backshall’s Deadly Dinosaurs (CBBC) and Trollied (Sky).