UK Film Council one of highest-profile quangos to be cut
The UK Film Council became one of the highest profile quangos to be axed by the coalition government after culture secretary Jeremy Hunt unexpectedly announced its abolition.
In a raft of mergings, streamlinings and closures, Hunt also axed the Museums, Libraries and Archives council (MLA).
John Woodward, chief executive of the UK Film Council, briefed an unprepared staff about the decision at the council's central London headquarters this morning. No one had seen it coming. He said the decision had been taken with "no notice and no consultation".
Tuesday 27 July 2010
Monday 26 July 2010
UK Film Council to be abolished!
The UK Film Council is to be axed as part of a cost-cutting drive by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), it has been announced.
The organisation, founded in 2000, had an annual budget of £15m to invest in British films and employed 75 people.
Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said he wanted to establish a "direct and less bureaucratic relationship with the British Film Institute".
UK Film Council chairman Tim Bevan called it "a bad decision".
He said the announcement was "imposed without any consultation or evaluation".
Click on the title to read more...
The organisation, founded in 2000, had an annual budget of £15m to invest in British films and employed 75 people.
Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said he wanted to establish a "direct and less bureaucratic relationship with the British Film Institute".
UK Film Council chairman Tim Bevan called it "a bad decision".
He said the announcement was "imposed without any consultation or evaluation".
Click on the title to read more...
Film Council axemen could murder an industry
The government's decision to shut down the UK Film Council is tragically naive. No other body will do a better job
It was nothing short of a hammer blow. This morning, word came through of John Woodward's email to UK Film Council staff informing them that the government was planning to shut them down. Then the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) confirmed it in a written statement at lunchtime. I was genuinely shocked. It felt like I'd nipped out for 10 minutes to get a pie and while I was out they closed the British film industry.
Reading the fine print is tricky. Can it really be the case that the Film Council will be killed, with nothing to take its place? The government has said that lottery funding of films will continue, but transferred to already existing organisations. (Who, exactly? The reason why the Film Council was created in the first place was that no one had proved competent in dealing with film industry funding in the past.) The British Film Institute was promoted with the phrase "strong relationship", but the BFI was stripped of its production funding capability years ago, and was in any case preparing to merge with the Film Council. What's happening there? And what about the Edinburgh and London film festivals, who have basically been directed and repositioned as part of a Film Council funding programme?
Click on the title to find out more...
It was nothing short of a hammer blow. This morning, word came through of John Woodward's email to UK Film Council staff informing them that the government was planning to shut them down. Then the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) confirmed it in a written statement at lunchtime. I was genuinely shocked. It felt like I'd nipped out for 10 minutes to get a pie and while I was out they closed the British film industry.
Reading the fine print is tricky. Can it really be the case that the Film Council will be killed, with nothing to take its place? The government has said that lottery funding of films will continue, but transferred to already existing organisations. (Who, exactly? The reason why the Film Council was created in the first place was that no one had proved competent in dealing with film industry funding in the past.) The British Film Institute was promoted with the phrase "strong relationship", but the BFI was stripped of its production funding capability years ago, and was in any case preparing to merge with the Film Council. What's happening there? And what about the Edinburgh and London film festivals, who have basically been directed and repositioned as part of a Film Council funding programme?
Click on the title to find out more...
Thursday 1 July 2010
Postmodern Media - Gaming moves in 3D direction at E3 expo
Marc Cieslak checks out the latest in video game technology at annual gaming expo E3.
The future of gaming appears to be in 3D, with Sony's PlayStation 3 already supporting the format via a firmware download. Nintendo also plans to bring 3D to handheld devices with the 3DS.
Click on the link to watch more.
The future of gaming appears to be in 3D, with Sony's PlayStation 3 already supporting the format via a firmware download. Nintendo also plans to bring 3D to handheld devices with the 3DS.
Click on the link to watch more.
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