Making Drama in a Crisis

16 March 10

Facing increased competition and slashed budgets, how can those working in television drama cope with the continuing recession? John Willis leads a panel of industry experts in the debate.

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In September 2009, during the peak of recession in the UK, BAFTA Television Committee Chairman John Willis, lead a panel of industry experts in a discussion about the effects that the overwhelming financial crisis might have on our television industry.

Members of the panel included Nicola Shindler (Producer and founder of Red Productions Company ), Liza Marshall (Head of Drama, Channel 4), Eileen Gallagher (Chief Executive of Shed Productions ), Ben Stephenson (Controller, Drama Commissioning BBC) and John McVay (Chief Executive, Pact ).

At a time of intense commercial pressure, shrinking budgets and unprecedented competition for audience share, those involved in all areas of the creative industries have been plagued by uncertainty over the future of their sector. For all industry professionals the key concern is to ensure a stable and thriving economy in drama production and at the same time to ensure breadth and diversity of ideas and talent.

In this recording John Willis asks the panel: how can the industry maintain creative integrity and continue to deliver world class television drama in spite of economic downturn?

With broadcasters now devoting far fewer hours to television drama, producers Schindler and Gallagher highlight the distinct lack of work available and the severe impact this has on their trade. Professionals are becoming less inclined to take creative risks and are spending more time on development tasks than actually creating something truly dynamic.

We are looking to producers to be more entrepreneurial and to access other funding

Due to cuts in advertising revenues, times are proving hard for Channel 4 and Liza Marshall calls for producers to take a more entrepreneurial approach to raising revenue as all television channels have suffered funding cuts. Stephenson draws attention to the government’s Efficiency Agenda enforcing expenditure cuts throughout the BBC.

Of further concern is the decrease in opportunities for industry newcomers with less work on offer and established writers being favoured as the ‘low-risk’ option. On a positive note however; Marshall highlights the opportunities now available online, describing the internet as a “terrific crucible for getting young writers on the air”.

Many production companies are now creating online dramas and these opportunities should be seized. During hard times the key to recovery must be to source new outlets and entrepreneurial methods in order to create low cost, high quality drama.

PACT Chief Executive John McVay talks about the current state of original drama production in the UK before BAFTA's Making Drama in a Crisis Debate.