£50 MILLION MEDIA PARK OPENS

THE FIRST tenants have moved in to Corsham Media Park, an innovative development operating at the cutting edge of film, TV and new media.
The multi-million pound Media Park at Corsham, Wiltshire is set to become a leading force in Europe for the production, management and broadcasting of digital content.
Hartham Park has already invested more than £2 million in the project, the overall scheme is expected to cost over £50 million. The development provides a real alternative to London and will become a focal point for those working in film, TV and new media.
Corsham Media Park is the brainchild of business entrepreneur, Jeffrey Thomas, who owns and runs the nearby Hartham Park estate, and is backed by a number of leading figures in the world of media and entertainment.
The new development will not only become the major digital and communications platform for the West Country, but also houses a media factory, data-centre, studios, film stages and back-lot facilities.
The Corsham media park is a unique environment for the production and management of new and traditional media.
Based on a former secret military site set in 42 acres of woodland, it includes a 20-acre secure backlot that offers complete privacy and the space needed for large-scale special effects and street scenes. The studio complex - sound stages, workshops, rehearsal studios and prop stores will provide an environment for all traditional film and television crafts as well as virtual studios.
Matthew Davison the Director of Media & Communications for the Hartham Park Group said: “We are not re-building Pinewood, producers want smaller studios with hi-tech facilities like optical fibre connections and blue screen for virtual studios”
The technology rich, media factory is a 27,000 sq. ft modern facility offering offices and studio facilities from 200 to 2000 sq. ft. The resource centre of the media factory, the Hub, includes a business centre, café, meeting rooms and for freelances - the Touchdown Zone.
The first phase of the park, the media factory, features 17 business units sits at the centre of the ‘golden eight’, a former MOD national communications grid which now provides the digital backbone to the UK internet.
The digital platform is operated by Complete Data Services Limited from within the data suite inside the Media Factory and is now operational, with multiple 45 megabyte channels.
(GB)