CMC 2014 - Children‘s Film: Forever Forgotten?

This session aims to contribute to the BFI’s  current consultation on future support for children’s feature films. 

Family films took over 15% of the global box office in 2013  - worth over £1bn/$1.7bn/€1.2bn – this excludes merchandising.  We all take children to see movies and/or end up seeing endless repeats of favourites on DVD or downloads.  So why when we discuss UK Film Production are Childrens/family film forgotten?

With a solid base of 3 out of 8 of the top films watched by 7-15 years olds produced in the UK in 2013 what are the next steps and how can the BFI, tax credits, distribution support and talent development be improved to build on this beginning?

One key question in this area is do features have to be brand/franchise based – how original can we be?

And how does UK support for Children’s film production compare with the rapidly changing support initiatives in Europe.

To help answer these questions and more:

•  Justin Johnson  (BFI)  brings us up to date with current BFI research and thinking.
•  David Sproxton  (Aardman Animations) identifies the key aspects  a feature and its market value looking at the US Studio model and a UK Independent model
•  Robert Chandler  (Space Age Films) uses 'The Canterville Ghost' feature as an example of a UK independent producer model
•  Viola Gabrielli  (Kids Regio) brings us up to date with the latest German government support for Children’s Original films, and its impact on EU wide support.