The British film industry is an amazing sector that we are proud to be a part of. As a British film production company we are amazed by the wonderful productions that our colleagues create and today we thought we'd shed a little light on the industry we hold so dear.

The British Film Industry Started in Leeds!

The first film ever created was actually filmed in our home in Leeds! Louis Le Prince shot the world's first film in Leeds in 1888. It only lasts for a few seconds and is of a group of people in a garden. They walk in circles around the garden that's in the suburb of Roundhay, Leeds. Over 130 years ago, the creation of 'moving pictures' aka movies has changed dramatically. Not only is there now a whole industry, employing over 84,000 people directly in 2019, but the films of today are also completely unrecognisable to the first film.

Film Production Companies And The Economy

The UK film industry is big business with 25% of all box office sales globally coming from British Films! But there is so much that happens behind the scenes to get a film into place.

Here are some of the industry stats about film production companies in the UK economy.

• In 2018, the UK film industry had a turnover of £16.7 billion. The UK film industry’s direct contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) represented over 6% of the GDP of all the creative industries.

• In 2019, around 84,000 people worked in the UK film industry, of whom 66,000 worked in film production directly.

• In 2019, there were over 8,400 film production companies and almost 3,000 post-production companies in the UK. We are one of them! There were 430 film distributors and 275 film exhibitors. The majority of companies were small (turnover under £250,000).

• The production, post-production and distribution sectors are concentrated in London and the South East. Outside London and the South East, there were significant production and post-production clusters in the East of England, the South West and the North West. So we definitely break all the trends by being a film production company in Leeds and Huddersfield, Yorkshire.

Creative Stats of British Film Production

The film industry isn't just about the economy though, it's an amazing source of creativity. From the on-set cast and crew, through to scriptwriters and CGI Artists. There is a huge amount of creativity and artistry that goes into creating films.

We have some of the best talents in the world.

• Of the 200 highest-earning films at worldwide cinemas from 2010-2019, 26 are based on stories and characters created by UK writers.

• British acting talent has played lead and/or supporting roles in 67.5% of the highest-earning 200 films from 2010-2019.

• UK directors were behind 31 of the 200 highest earning films worldwide from 2010-2019, which collectively have earned over $20 billion.

• UK films and British talent won 27 major film awards in 2019/20, including six Oscars and 13 BAFTAs.

The Future of The Film

The industry is dominated by large production companies and distributors. However, British cinema has a long history of independent production companies creating unique films. The last year has been tough for everyone involved in the industry but we think the future is particularly bright.

The support and desire for independent films is growing. We believe it will grow further as life changes in the wake of the pandemic. We are passionate about supporting other independent film and the talents involved in them. They create a more diverse, interesting portfolio of work. Plus we love the creativity and imagination we see every day from our colleagues.

If you are searching for an independent production company, why not give Isaac Who a try? We are a friendly bunch, full of passion for our craft. Get in touch today and let us know about your big idea.