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Northern Alliance - BFI

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1.3 Access and diversity<br />

The UK Film Council aims to help the UK film industry to build a more diverse<br />

workforce, and diversity is one of its key policy priorities. Digital Shorts films have<br />

been made in every nation and region of the UK and, in order to further its aim, the<br />

UK Film Council has backed two positive action schemes, Blank Slate and The Magic<br />

Hour, targeting black and minority ethnic and disabled filmmakers respectively.<br />

1.4 Evaluation of the UK Film Council‟s support for short film<br />

The UK Film Council's support has achieved a great deal, including one of the<br />

founding objectives of the NCF‟s investment in short films which was to create a<br />

generation of filmmakers who were comfortable in the use of digital production<br />

technology. There have also been some significant changes in the context for short<br />

film since the UK Film Council‟s original strategy was set, not least the rapid<br />

development of the internet as a means of viewing short form audiovisual content.<br />

Between them, the 805 short films which the UK Film Council has supported have<br />

secured 144 selections at A-list festivals 3 and 58 high profile awards or nominations, 4<br />

including ten non-UK A-list festival selections and seven non-UK high profile awards<br />

(eg Oscars®, Berlin, Clermont Ferrand, Sundance and Venice). Despite this, fewer<br />

than a quarter of the films (from each programme) are available online and the<br />

viewings for those Digital Shorts films that are available online averaged just 463.<br />

There is, however, a clear consensus that the main value in making short films is<br />

instrumental, not intrinsic; that is their ability to nurture and develop talent in<br />

readiness for feature filmmaking.<br />

NCF research indicates that 63% of the feature directors it has backed have made<br />

short films. It also indicates that one third of Cinema Extreme directors and 8% of<br />

Completion Fund and Digital Shorts Plus/Digital Nation directors have already gone<br />

on to make features.<br />

Unfortunately, short film activity supported by the UK Film Council has largely failed<br />

to meet its diversity targets, with the participation of disabled people in short<br />

filmmaking clearly remaining an area of concern. During the period 2006-2009,<br />

Cinema Extreme, the Completion Fund and Digital Shorts Plus/Digital Nation did not<br />

3 A-list film festivals referred to are: Berlin, Cannes, Clermont-Ferrand, Edinburgh, Encounters,<br />

London, Sundance and Venice.<br />

4 Source: official UK Film Council collected statistics. High profile awards refer to prizes<br />

awarded at the following film festivals: Berlin, Clermont-Ferrand, Edinburgh International, Sundance<br />

and Venice; and prizes and/or nominations at the Academy Awards®, BAFTAs, BIFAs, European Film<br />

Awards, Scottish BAFTAs, and the TCM Classic Shorts awards.<br />

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