The UK’s Film Agency for Wales invested $1.9m (£1.15m) in the Welsh film industry during 2008/2009, according to its annual report, which was published on November 24.

The total investment in features over the 12-month period was $1.6m (£940,050), which included $342,000 (£205,000) towards development costs and $1.2m (£735,000) towards the production of features involving Welsh talent.

Projects to benefit from the investment last financial year include the Oscar short-listed documentary Mugabe And The White African, which received $67,000 (£40,000) in production funding via its Welsh producer Elizabeth Morgan Hemlock, and Hattie Dalton’s Barafundle Bay, which stars Hugh Bonneville, and is now in post. The film shot on location in Wales and received $250,000 (£150,000) in production funding.

A further $271,500 (£162,996) went towards promoting exhibition and film events in Wales, including Wales’s international film and music festival, Soundtrack, and the Film Club scheme, which gives Welsh school children access to films for free.

The agency’s 2009/2010 budget currently stands at $2.1m (£1.27m), although its 2010/2011 budget, which is yet to be announced, is likely to be affected by the UKFC’s proposal to cut its regional screen agency funding by 20% from April 2010.

The Film Agency for Wales is funded by the Arts Council of Wales, the UK Film Council and the Welsh Assembly Government, via Creative Business Wales.

Topics