Channel 4 and British Film: an Assessment Of
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Channel 4 and British Film: An Assessment of Industrial and Cultural Impact, 1982-1998 Laura Mayne This thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Portsmouth. September 2014 i Abstract This thesis is an historical investigation of Channel 4’s influence on the British film industry and on British film culture between 1982 and 1998. Combining archival research with interview testimony and secondary literature, this thesis presents the history of a broadcaster’s involvement in British film production, while also examining the cultural and industrial impact of this involvement over time. This study of the interdependence of film and television will aim to bring together aspects of what have hitherto been separate disciplinary fields, and as such will make an important contribution to film and television studies. In order to better understand this interdependence, this thesis will offer some original ideas about the relationship between film and television, examining the ways in which Channel 4’s funding methods led to new production practices. Aside from the important part the Channel played in funding (predominantly low-budget) films during periods when the industry was in decline and film finance was scarce, this partnership had profound effects on British cinema in the 1980s and 1990s. In exploring these effects, this thesis will look at the ways in which the film funding practices of the Channel changed the landscape of the film industry, offered opportunities to emerging new talent, altered perceptions of British film culture at home and abroad, fostered innovative aesthetic practices and brought new images of Britain to cinema and television screens. ii Contents Abstract ii Declaration v Abbreviations vi List of Tables vii List of Figures vii Acknowledgements viii Dissemination ix Introduction 1 Part One: Cinema and Television, ‘Lovers Now, Not Neighbours’ 32 Chapter 1 Film on Four: Changing Policies, Shifting Identities 33 Chapter 2 Cinema, Meet Television: Issues, Trends and Debates 58 Part Two: Industry and Working Practices 90 Chapter 3 Channel 4 and Independent Production in Britain 91 Chapter 4 Management, Creativity and Support for New Talent 140 Part Three: Identity and Perception 173 Chapter 5 Channel 4 Films in Europe and the USA 174 iii Chapter 6 Cultural Legacy and Canonisation 218 Conclusion 249 Endnotes 268 Bibliography 282 Select Filmography 295 Appendix 1 Interview Transcripts 296 Appendix 2 Sample Channel 4 Films Database 462 iv Declaration Whilst registered as a candidate for the above degree, I have not been registered for any other research award. The results and conclusions embodied in this thesis are the work of the named candidate and have not been submitted for any other academic award. Word count: 78,848 v Abbreviations BBC British Broadcasting Corporation BFI British Film Institute BSF British Screen Finance BSAC British Screen Advisory Council BUFVC British Universities Film and Video Council C4 Channel 4 CEA Cinema Exhibitor’s Association FFI Film Four International NFFC National Film Finance Corporation UKFC UK Film Council. vi List of Tables: Table 3.1 British films produced 1980-1999 93 Table 4.1 Short and Curlies writers and directors who moved on to features 165 Table 6.1 Culturally influential films with Channel 4 funding, selected from critic’s ‘best films’ lists 225 Table 6.2 Films with Channel 4 funding from BFI and industry ‘best British films’ lists 229 Table 6.3 Titles in Film4's 30 films for 30p promotion 245 List of Figures: Figure 1.1 The Channel 4 Commissioning Process 41 Figure 3.1 Film on Four funding deals 98 Figure 6.1 Film on Four/FilmFour idents through the ages 235 vii Acknowledgements I am indebted to my supervisors Justin Smith and Paul McDonald for their help, advice and support over the past four years. It is no exaggeration to say that without their guidance this thesis could not have been completed. The staff at the University of Portsmouth have also offered much in the way of moral support, and I would especially like to thank the postgraduate students in the School of Creative Arts, Film and Media; particularly Sally Shaw, Simon Hobbs and Michael O’Neill. I am also thankful to Channel 4 for allowing access to their archives, which provided much of the primary material for this thesis. Channel 4 have also been supportive in allowing me to interview staff at Film4 such as Tessa Ross, Kate Robinson and Jessica Levick, as well as providing helpful suggestions and contact information for other interviewees. I am also grateful to the filmmakers and producers who so kindly provided their time in agreeing to be interviewed for this research. In particular, I would like to thank Stephen Woolley, Tim Bevan, David Aukin, Colin Leventhal and Michael Darlow. Finally, thanks to Mark Wilson, for being a constant source of reassurance, and to Rachael, for keeping me sane throughout the writing up process. viii Dissemination Publications A version of Chapter 6 was published as ‘Assessing Cultural Impact: Film4, Canon Formation and Forgotten Films’, Journal of British Cinema and Television, 11:4 (2014), 469-480. With Justin Smith, ‘Interview Dossier: The Four Heads of Film4’, Journal of British Cinema and Television, 11: 4 (2014), 517-551. A version of Chapter 2 was published as ‘“Creative Commissioning”: Examining the Regional Aesthetic in the Work of Channel 4's First Commissioning Editor for Fiction, David Rose’, Journal of British Cinema and Television, 9:1 (2012), 40-57. ‘Film on Four’, Viewfinder, 85, (2011), 16-18. Presentations ‘Channel 4, Film4 and the Impact of Brand Identity on the UK Film Industry’, Society for Cinema and Media Studies, conference held at the Sheraton Hotel Seattle, WA (March 2014). 'Televisual film, cinematic drama: space, technology and aesthetics in early Films on Four', Spaces of Television, conference held at the University of Reading (September 2013) ‘Productive Relationships: Film on Four and the New Creative Culture of the 1990s’, Channel 4 and British Film Cutlrue Conference at BFI Southbank, London (November 2012). ix ‘From Cannes to Berlin: Examining the importance of film festivals in promoting Channel 4 films in Europe’, NECS (European Network for Cinema and Media Studies) Conference at the New University of Lisbon (June 2012). ‘Film on Four: policy, diversity and shifting identities’, Postgraduate Research Student Conference, University of Portsmouth (May 2012). ‘Film on Four: changing policies, shifting identities’, talk given at the Southern Broadcasting History Group Seminar Series held at the University of Portsmouth (April 2012). ‘“Creative Commissioning”: examining the regional aesthetic in the work of Channel 4’s first Commissioning Editor for Fiction, David Rose’, Creative Accounting: British Producers, British Screens, conference at the University of the West of England, Bristol (April 2011). ‘“A sense of time and place”: examining the regional aesthetic in the work of Channel 4’s first Commissioning Editor for Fiction, David Rose’, The Politics of Television Space, conference at the University of Leicester (April 2011). x Introduction The policy from the outset was to commission or set the cornerstone for some 20 feature length films per year ... Films made on comparatively modest budgets, taking strength from a sense of the particular, a sense of time and place – written and directed by established filmmakers and introducing new writing and directing talent. Films of imagination and 1 originality. David Rose, Channel 4 Senior Commissioning Editor for Fiction, 1981-1990. Overview It was Channel 4’s first Chief Executive, Jeremy Isaacs, who made film financing a priority within the original remit of the 1980 Broadcasting Act under which the Channel was established. As he prepared to take up his position, Isaacs and the Channel’s Commissioning Editor for Fiction, David Rose, defined their idea for a new broadcasting strand called ‘Film on Four’. The films scheduled in this slot would be funded (or co-funded) by the Channel, which would, in essence, be working with the film industry and co-producing British films on a consistent basis; a move completely unprecedented in the history of British film and television. The original aim was to commission around twenty low-budget films each year from independent producers, some of which would be fully funded, but most of which (for financial reasons) would be co-productions. Film on Four started with this broad template, which soon diversified to include a number of international co-productions as well as partnerships with other UK broadcasters. In the early days of the Channel theatrical release was an ambition for only a few select productions, but this soon became more common throughout the 1980s (increasing considerably in the 1990s). ‘Film on Four’ was the name given to the films commissioned by Channel 4 between 1982 and 1998. Film on Four operated within the Fiction (later Drama) 1 department of the Channel, first under the aegis of David Rose (between 1982 and 1990) and then under David Aukin (between 1990 and 1998). In 1998 the Channel’s film production and distribution activities, which had diversified considerably throughout the 1990s, were merged into a standalone company - FilmFour Ltd - under the leadership of Paul Webster. Whereas Film on Four had employed a cultural policy and enjoyed economic security from the Channel, FilmFour was a largely commercial enterprise which was far more focused on profits and securing international co-production deals. Following the collapse of this venture in 2002, film sponsorship activities were subsumed within the Channel once more, under the title of ‘Film4’. Although part three of this thesis will briefly touch upon Film4 in its contemporary guise (in order to discuss marketing, identity, and issues of cultural perception) this thesis will focus mainly on the time period of 1982-1998 in order to offer a more comprehensive study.