The UK Global Screen Fund (UKGSF) has invested a further £2.2m into the UK’s independent screen sector in its latest round of awards, with Neon Films and Elation Pictures among the recipients.
The BFI has made an additional 26 awards through the international business development strand, which has now awarded £9.1m to date. The UKGSF is financed through the DCMS, with awards administered by the BFI.
Companies to receive funding from this wave of awards include Nicky Bentham’s Neon Films, whose feature Brides is world premiering in Sundance. The £55,000 award, through the film transformation track, has been put towards the hire of development personnel.
Saint Maud and Love Lies Bleeding producer Escape Plan Productions, founded by Oliver Kassman, used its £111,000 film transformation award to establish Anna Keeley as an in-house producer. Amy Jackson’s Scottish Aftersun outfit Unified Theory Productions also used its £50,000 award to expand its headcount, putting it towards a creative and production executive.
UKGSF was recently awarded an additional £7m for the coming year from the DCMS, as outlined at the Creative Industries Growth Summit held last week (January 17) in Gateshead.
The fund has also published a multi-year evaluation, looking into the impact and economic value of the fund from its launch in 2021 to 2024. The evaluation, undertaken by BOP Consulting, found that every £1 of UKGSF funding generates £22 of net benefit.
The international business development strand is designed to help UK companies achieve new business partnerships, enhance their profile and reach in the global marketplace and increase revenue generation through export and international expansion.
Awards are in the form of non-recoupable grants ranging between £50,000 and £200,000, via either the film transformation (internationally-focused three-five year business strategies in independent film specifically) or general (business strategies to create, acquire and/or exploit intellectual property in all screen sectors across three years) tracks.
UKGSF re-opening dates for 2025 are: February 6 for international co-production, April for international business development and a rolling basis for international distribution.
UKGSF international business development award – film transformation track
Cantilever Group - £120,000
Elation Pictures - £100,000
Escape Plan Productions - £111,000
Finely Crafted Media (trading as Architect) - £50,000
Golden Arrow Pictures - £50,000
Jeva Films - £90,000
Neon Films - £55,000
Unified Theory Productions - £50,000
UKGSF international business development award – general track
4Pi Productions - £66,155
Air Street Films - £50,000
Causeway Pictures - £55,000
Empress Films - £85,000
Fireblade Software - £90,000
Flickerpix - £83,000
Hazimation - £70,000
Hyper Luminal Games - £90,000
Kailash Films - £100,000
Keelworks - £87,445
Me & You Productions - £100,000
Moonriver TV - £70,000
Second Home Studios - £50,000
Sylver Entertainment - £95,000
Walk on Air Films - £112,000
We Are Anagram - £85,400
Wired Productions - £100,000
Yeti Media - £135,000
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