top true independents Air TV
Arrow International Media Atlantic Avalon
Back2back Balloon Entertainment Blink Industries Brinkworth Cactus TV Cardiff Clear Story Collective Media Corenelia Street Curious Films Dash Pictures Double Act
supported 50 companies via its Small Indie Fund over the last year. The PACT census is based on
158 individual companies with turnovers of more than £1m. The census estimates that there are around 260 more indies turning over less than £1m. From their data, they’ve observed continued consolidation, with medium-sized, true indies being swallowed into larger groups and new indies launching with majority backing in place. In Televisual’s Production 100, a number of true indies that took part last year have been bought: natural history and factual entertainment indie Plimsoll - valued at £130m - sold to ITV Studios; Sony Pictures Television took a majority stake in Bad Wolf; and Fremantle acquired Element Pictures.
Staying true For most true indies, as well as an investment boost, becoming part of a larger group offers security and a buffer against thornier times. But the advantages of being independent are also clear. Leading producers such as Wonderhood, Nutopia and October continue to thrive as independents.
Expectation Firstlook TV Fresh Start Hardcash Hartswood Hidden Light Interstellar King Of Sunshine Lightbox Lupus Films Magic Light Merman Mindhouse Minnow Films Nutopia October Films Pacific
Curious Films is four years old and
now has a staff of around 30. Its slate includes returning BBC3 series Squad Goals and its first Netflix documentary Running with the Devil featured in the Netflix global top 10 this summer. “When we’re pitching to people, I think there’s a sense that these are really ideas that we care about that we want to make,” says Dov Freedman, the CEO and co-founder of Curious. “That’s probably the biggest advantage of being a true indie…. Commissioners can quickly sense how passionate you are about the idea you’re pitching.” Another big advantage is versatility.
“As a true indie we can move a little bit quicker, people comment to us that the hierarchy is very flat,” says Freedman. “I’d like to think we’re lighter on our feet.” That versatility could be needed more than ever in the face of wage inflation, the cost-of-living crisis and a consolidation in the streamer market. “The headlines that you read at the moment do make concerning reading. But I guess we’ll look at opportunities that it might create,” says Freedman. “The pound tanking against the dollar
Autumn 2022
Rare Television Raw Cut Rollem Roughcut Sister
Sixteen South Spun Gold Ten 66 The ATS Team True To Nature Wildseed Studios Wildstar Films Wonderhood Woodcut Zig Zag
might create more opportunities with some of the US clients.” Having a spread of clients definitely helps to shore up business. “Everybody has to be smart around how we’re looking at the market,” says McArdle at Collective Media Group. After attending this year’s Edinburgh TV Festival, she described a seller’s market, but with the caveat that the sellers need to be wise about how and where they are commissioned. “We’re making decisions around who we take projects to, knowing there are three or four people who would potentially buy them.”
Sourcing talent Selling well-packaged ideas is one thing, finding the behind screen talent to get them made is another. When McArdle says, “the main challenge is off screen talent,” she is echoing the whole industry.
Rollem, the Leeds-based scripted true indie founded by the late Kay Mellor back in 2000 has consistently developed local talent: “Production is booming, especially here in Yorkshire. There is a big worry about crew
P24
televisual.com
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