Yesterday (Tuesday 23rd January), Pact CEO John McVay gave evidence to the Commons Culture, Media and Sport (CMS) Committee as part of its first evidence session in its inquiry into British Film and High-End TV.

John began by highlighting that while the UK is the second biggest audiovisual economy in the world, the indie film sector has been lagging behind with the situation for indie producers worsening since Pact’s last report on film in 2017. John also highlighted that indie film’s share of UK box office is at its lowest level since 2016 at 5% in 2021 and 8% in 2022, as set out in research commissioned by Pact published in November.

Other witnesses at the session alongside John were Phil Clapp, CEO of the UK Cinema Association (UKCA) and Andy Leyshon, CEO of the Film Distributors Association (FDA). All three discussed the importance of marketing for indie films and were supportive of increased support for P&A (Prints and Advertising, aka marketing). Phil Clapp raised the issue of a lack of high quality in local films, which is impacting post-COVID cinema returns. Committee members asked what more could be done to incentivise indie film, with John, Phil and Andy all agreeing that the best way to support the indie film sector is by increasing the Film Tax Relief for films of a targeted budget range; which Pact has proposed to Government and is in active discussions on. 

Jane Stevenson, the MP for Wolverhampton North East, asked if the sector is doing enough to future proof with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI). John replied that Pact is in active discussions with others in the sector on this, including Equity. He also highlighted the issue with using copyrighted works to train AI algorithms, something which we highlighted in our response to the Government’s consultation on AI regulation last year.

Gurinder Chadha OBE, acclaimed Writer, Producer and Director of hit British films such as Bend It Like Beckham and Bhaji on the Beach gave evidence in the session prior and discussed the difficulties indie film producers face in attracting finance and surviving in an incredibly challenging market. She also highlighted how important the Film Tax Relief is to producers and echoed our calls for an increased rate for films of a targeted budget range.

Pact would like to thank the CMS Committee for the opportunity to give evidence to their inquiry.

We will keep members updated on our Film Tax Relief campaign as it develops further.