Beyond the Accelerator: 7 ways we can help you achieve your export goals

The brand new Pact Export Accelerator is a custom-designed online tool to help UK producers craft their own export strategy for their businesses. It’s a fantastic resource that we hope you will take full advantage of.

But once you have your strategy, what next? There are a range of ways that Pact can help you to achieve the targets you set in the Export Accelerator, including:
 

1.    Organised delegations to international markets

Pact has led delegations of UK producers to numerous international markets, including MIPCOM, Realscreen, MIPJunior, Shanghai TV Festival, NATPE, The Cross Media Forum, Rio Content Market, Asia TV Forum and many more.

These are excellent opportunities for you to make new international contacts and do deals. Perhaps in your strategy you identified a Brazilian broadcaster who would be a perfect fit for a historical documentary you’re developing? Well, Rio Content Market could provide you with the perfect opportunity to meet them face-to-face. Or you’re looking to exploit your children’s animated series online? MIPJunior would give you the chance to meet lots of kids’ SVOD platforms all in one place.

Being part of an official UK delegation also has added benefits, such as pre-scheduled meetings, access to exclusive networking opportunities, discounted registration, dedicated meeting spaces and inclusion in official market brochures.

If you would like to find out more about upcoming international market opportunities e-mail yuan@pact.co.uk or visit the Markets page on the Pact website.

2.    TAP grants

Pact is an official Department for International Trade (DIT) Trade Challenge Partner, which means we work with the Government to identify key media trade shows which will offer UK independent production companies the best business opportunities.

The Tradeshow Access Programme (TAP) grants can then assist UK companies with the costs of visiting those key trade shows, and Pact can help eligible producers to apply for them when registering for a market. The grants are between £500 and £2,500, and there are certain eligibility criteria that must be met, but Pact’s International Team can help walk you through it.

If you would like to find out more about TAP grants, there is information on the UK Government website, or you can e-mail yuan@pact.co.uk.

3.    Legal and Business Affairs support

You can find territory-specific information (including details about incentives, treaties and regulations) in the Territories section of the Export Accelerator. But in addition to that, the Pact Resource Library has a useful guideline document for UK co-production or umbrella deals, and our in-house Legal and Business Affairs team is on-hand to assist with any queries that Pact members may have regarding their international activities. You can reach them by telephone or e-mail, and if there’s something they don’t know the answer to they can point you in the right direction for further support.

It is also possible to book a 30-minute face-to-face meeting with a member of the Legal and Business Affairs team at one of our regular surgeries in the Pact office. The times and dates of these surgeries are listed on the Pact Events Calendar and in the weekly members’ newsletter.

4.    Missions and creative exchanges

Separate to market visits, Pact arranges targeted missions to a range of countries. Recent territories have included France, Russia, China, Italy, the United States, Denmark, Sweden and Germany. We also host international delegations in the UK, such as from China, Mexico and Canada.

These provide UK producers with an opportunity to meet broadcasters, commissioning editors and programming teams from other countries, and receive briefings on treaties, funding and incentives. Costs are kept as low as possible to make missions inclusive to all indies, no matter their size.

To be kept up to date about upcoming missions and creative exchanges, make sure you are on the Export Accelerator mailing list by e-mailing yuan@pact.co.uk.

5.    Pact’s in-house International Team

Pact is very lucky to have Dawn McCarthy-Simpson MBE heading up our international strategy. Dawn’s drive and commitment to ensuring that UK independents are supported to export their content around the globe earned her an honour in the 2017 Queen’s Birthday Honours List for Services to Exports and her experience and knowledge is second to none. Dawn has made a number of innovations in the field, such as launching the UK’s first virtual market for the creative industries and the first app to connect global commissioning execs with UK producers. She works collaboratively with indies and is the driving force behind the Pact Export Pledge, which is part of the Pact campaign to support indies to double their export revenues by 2020.

Assisting Dawn is Yuan Liu. Yuan is a Chinese native who has studied both in China and the UK. She contributes to the full spectrum of Pact’s international work, but her knowledge of the Chinese market in particular proves to be a vital asset as UK companies are increasingly seeking opportunities to do business there.

Both Dawn and Yuan are on hand to offer support and advice to UK indies about their international strategy. To get in contact you can e-mail dawn@pact.co.uk or yuan@pact.co.uk.

6.    Discounts to conferences and events

Conferences and events are another great opportunity to seek out and meet international executives and potential collaborators. With this in mind, we negotiate discounted rates for Pact members to attend international conferences and events both in the UK and around the world. For example, in 2018 alone we’ve secured discounts to The Edinburgh International Television Festival, Sheffield Doc/Fest, Realscreen, Realscreen West, NAB New York, The Children’s Media Conference, The London Film Festival, and Scripted – to name just a few.

In a single year, these discounts can add up to well in excess of £1000 in savings, making it more affordable to seize business opportunities in the places where the international entertainment community gets together.

7.    Pact Export Report

Every year we publish an Export Report, in partnership with BBC Studios, ITV Studios and DIT. The Report offers key insights into the markers and territories where UK content is having most success, and can help to identify growth areas and opportunities. The Report also includes a breakdown of overseas appeal by genre.

In 2018, for example, the Report found that the U.S. remains the UK’s largest export market, with sales worth £335m in 2016/17, followed by Australia and France. Entertainment, Factual and Kids content sold best, and streaming services such as Amazon and Netflix accounted for a quarter of all sales.

The 2018 Exports Report can be downloaded here.
Previous editions can be downloaded here.

So those are seven of the ways that Pact can help you to achieve the export goals you set in your Export Accelerator strategy. Keep an eye on the International and Markets & Missions pages on the Pact website, and the Pact newsletter, for the latest international news and opportunities.