Buckingham launches consultancy Sampo Media

UK executives Pete Buckingham and Michael Gubbins have set up a London-based film analyst and consultancy outfit SampoMedia.

The company will focus on “understanding patterns of demand and consumer behaviour through the generation and analysis of data”, and offer project consultancy, workshops and think tanks, business consultancy and business model evaluation, bespoke research and in-depth reports.

Buckingham is the former head of distribution and exhibition at the UK Film Council and British Film Institute, where he led the rollout of the Digital Screen Network and website Find Any Film.

Consultant Gubbins, a former editor of Screen, Music Week and Computing, is the current chair of the Film Agency for Wales.

“Everyone talks about the need to understand audiences in all creative businesses but responding to information and analysis tend to be a weak link. We believe that there needs to be a more systematic approach with a far wider scope,” said Buckingham.

“Digital technologies and social media have dramatically increased access to intelligence about the way that consumers are thinking and acting and we will be using the latest techniques to effectively map audiences,” he continued. “What will be unique about the SampoMedia approach is our analysis, drawing on ideas and research from the widest sources.”