February 24, 2020

Pact has announced that it has been working in association with the Producers’ Roundtable to propose new guidelines for change for film producers, after an industry survey revealed that UK independent filmmakers are typically making just £6,000 a year from their film producing work.

The UK Producers’ Roundtable campaigns for better accessibility and sustainability for UK film producers. Pact explains that one hundred and forty-nine independent UK film producers were surveyed by them, with 75% of independent film producers who had made one to two feature films stating that they earned less than £6,000 a year over the past five years for their film producing work.

Other key findings include:

• of producers surveyed with five to ten feature films on their CV, 67% earned less than £15,000 a year over the past five years from producing those projects;
• 53% of independent film producers said they had given up their fee multiple times to get their films made, with 77% saying they had done this at least once;
• 30% of BAFTA nominated/winning independent film producers earned less than £10,000 over the past two years for their film producing work;
• 83% of independent film producers think being an indie producer in the UK today is not sustainable; and
• of the producers surveyed, 31% attended private school, compared to 6.5% of people in the UK.

The survey respondents included BAFTA and BIFA nominees and award winners, Screen Stars of Tomorrow, BAFTA Breakthrough Brits, and BFI Vision Award recipients.

The Producers’ Roundtable, in association with Pact, has now released a set of guidelines to help protect emerging producers working in the UK film industry. To access the guidelines, click here.