Over the past 20 years, Bristol Film Office and its partners The Bottle Yard Studios have assisted TV & film production worth an estimated £322 million to Bristol’s economy. Its operations have generated more than £2.1 million income for Bristol City Council through filming permits and charges.
Produced annually, Bristol Film Office’s economic impact figures are compiled using data from film and TV productions active throughout the reporting period on location in the city with Film Office assistance and at the Council-owned Bottle Yard Studios. They are calculated using national average production spend figures compiled by Creative England with contribution from all national Film Offices’ data.
‘Production spend per day’ figures take into consideration how much an average production of a particular genre/budget will spend on everything from local caterers, security and taxi firms, hotels, restaurants and coffee shops. Figures vary for different types of production and are used as a benchmark across the UK film and TV industry to help estimate the impact of film and TV production on local economies.
Key figures from Bristol’s film and TV production sector gathered to mark the 20th anniversary of Bristol Film Office, which was founded in 2003 by Bristol City Council to “attract, assist and provide business development opportunities for the moving image industry for the benefit of the city’s economy”. Bristolian actor and BBC Bristol Radio Presenter Joe Sims (Ruby Speaking, Broadchurch) presented a special ‘Filming in Bristol’ quiz night to mark the occasion. Guests included local crew, Location Managers and Line Producers; production company representatives from Sid Gentle, Mammoth Screen, Eleventh Hour, Moonage Pictures, 42, Blak Wave and Happy Hour Productions; venues that frequently host filming, including University of Bristol, UWE Bristol, Arnos Vale Cemetery and Clifton Suspension Bridge; and representatives from Council departments that Bristol Film Office liaises with to arrange filming logistics for productions, including Highways, Parking Services, Parks and Estates.
