The UK’s Film & TV Charity has added £500,000 to its stop-gap grants funding to support film and TV workers amid an economic crisis exacerbated by the US strikes.
The extra cash comes after the charity held a briefing call with representatives from the BBC, Channel 4, Channel 5, and Prime Video, who pledged further donations to bolster its budget. Other partners are expected to add to the overall pot.
The move was triggered by an 800% rise in applications for stop-gap grants in July compared with the same month last year. The grants offer one-off payments of up to £750 for eligible applicants experiencing a lack of work.
The charity’s recent survey looking at the financial resilience of industry workers shows that nearly half (46%) of respondents had less than £1,000 in savings and half aren’t contributing to a pension. It further identified that those from underrepresented groups were more likely to be affected, with carers, black and global majority and disabled workers often experiencing higher levels of debt and lower household incomes.
The Film & TV Charity has also highlighted the negative impact financial issues can have on workers’ mental health in February’s Looking Glass report, which revealed that three-quarters of workers are worried about future income.
New chief executive Marcus Ryder said the financial resilience of the workforce was a systemic problem.
“Having weathered the pandemic as an industry, the cost-of-living crisis, and other contributing factors like the impact of US strikes on global production, and pressures on scripted and unscripted production budgets, we see financial instability emerging as a growing concern and a significant contributor to the mental health and wellbeing of film, TV, and cinema workers, especially freelancers and other already marginalised workers,” he said.
Ryder added that he hopes partners and stakeholders will come together to address what he called “the next significant pillar of our collective response to improve the wellbeing of everyone working in our industry”.
The BBC’s director of talent, commissioning, Dawn Beresford said: “We are committed to helping support our talented freelance community through this difficult period and the grants provided by the Film & TV Charity can play a vital role helping retain talent in the industry. We look forward to discussing what more can be done to support freelancers longer term with our colleagues across the industry.”
Channel 4’s director of commissioning operations Emma Hardy said: “The TV production sector is facing unprecedented challenges and we know that many freelancers are struggling. This is an industry-wide issue that needs industry-wide solutions, and we are grateful to the Film and TV Charity for leading this project to help freelancers in urgent financial need.”
Ryder will discuss the results of the financial resilience survey during the charity’s Edinburgh TV Festival sessions Production under pressure: Supporting life on the frontline at 10am on 23 August and Production under pressure: Supporting life on the frontline at 4:45pm also on 23 August.
This story first appeared on Screen’s sister site Broadcast
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