Parker delivers 'wake-up call' to British industry

Sir Alan Parker, Chairman of the Film Council, has called for a radical overhaul of public support if British cinema is to be cured of its "little England" disease.
In his most controversial speech since taking up the council reins, Parker said the UK's influential tax breaks should focus support on distribution instead of the sacred cow of production.
Despite falling production levels, and many in the British industry turning to low-budget films, Parker called for ambitious films that can travel internationally.
"We need distribution-led companies to carve out a British share of the $60 billion world market and we can't do this simply by staying at home," he said.
Although the tax breaks are one of the few supports for the beleaguered production sector, the director of 'The Life Of David Gale' and 'Angela's Ashes' slammed public funding for production as "taking us nowhere". He said that the National Lottery subsidies and the production tax breaks had not delivered structural change needed to break out of the bust-boom cycle.
"Direct subsidy solely to production will never, ever form the basis of a successful film industry - even if we double, triple or quadruple the money presently on offer," he said. "We need a tax break that gives incentives to distributors - both strong independents and American studios - to invest in and acquire British films."
In an indictment of the lottery franchise system, he said that "producers will never be able to deliver the sustainable film industry we need" on their own.
Parker said the UK needed to ditch its parochial small-minded tendencies: "We need to abandon forever the 'little England' vision of a UK industry comprised of small British film companies delivering parochial British films. That, I suspect, is what many people think of when they talk of a 'sustainable' British film industry. Well, it's time for a reality check. That 'British' film industry never existed, and in the brutal age of global capitalism, it never will.
"We have to stop defining success by how well British films perform in Milton Keynes. This is a big world - really successful British films like Notting Hill can make up to 85% of their revenues outside the UK."
Parker said his overall goal was to reinvent the UK as a "film hub", which he said would be "a natural destination for international investment". Along with distribution, he maintained, that meant focusing on skills training for crews and the infrastructure of studios, post-production companies and service companies. At the same time, he called for a re-definition of a British film to "reflect the fact that actual production increasingly will take place in countries with a lower cost base than ours."
Responding to the speech, Film Minister Kim Howells said: "Film is at the very heart of this country's cultural life, with 175 million visits to cinemas likely this year, the highest number for more than 30 years.
"This is reflected in the importance the Government places in the UK being fully involved in the global film industry. For example, we have introduced new tax reliefs and have set up the Film Council to act as a lead body for film and as distributor of National Lottery funds. This will help ensure that films continue to be made in the UK and new talent is encouraged to develop and flourish here.
"Alan Parker and the Film Council have set out their vision for the future, and are encouraging debate about where the industry goes from here. This is to be welcomed. The key issues they have identified - education and skills, the distribution of films as well as production, and the role of the UK's industry working with the rest of the world through sales or in the making of films - are all major areas of concern.
"We look forward to working with other Government departments and the Film Council and to taking an active role in discussing the proposals."
(GB)