Contents Mission Department statement reviews 33 Production 2 9 Chairman’s Education 37 The spotlight fell on statement William Friedkin at the Financial bfi’s NFT statements A vision on the South Inside back cover 15 Bank: the new bfi 4 Collections London IMAX® Cinema bfi Fellows Director’s Film posters and stills are just part of the bfi’s report extensive collections bfi Education gets into the classroom A hugely successful bfi restoration: South 25 Exhibition 01 Chairman’s statement As I sit down in August to write my statement for the Institute’s 1998/99 financial year I have with real sadness just tendered my resignation as Chairman of the British Film Institute following the Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport’s invitation to chair the new strategic industry body, the Film Council. bfi Chairman Alan Parker on the set of I am therefore passing the through a full-scale review of Joan Bakewell, who his latest film baton of bfi chairmanship to activities with three simple succeeded Alan Parker Angela’s Ashes to chair the bfi in 1999 Joan Bakewell CBE who has aims: to make our collections been a bfi Governor for five more accessible; to get a years and who I know will broader range of films into UK and to secure its funding make an excellent Chair. I cinemas; and to create a base. wish her every success. coherent education strategy. This last year has therefore My tenure as the bfi’s All this was done against a seen a tough rationalisation Chairman lasted just 18 backdrop of a comprehensive which will include the months but during this time review of Government funding temporary closure of the bfi patron The Prince of Wales leads the Fellowship presentation the Governors and I have structures for film and a need Museum of the Moving Image to Sir J Paul Getty steered the organisation for the bfi to focus its activities and the loss of a number of 02 Read the Sky. It was a fine swansong for a production unit whose history dates back to Sir Michael Balcon. I am therefore particularly pleased that the bfi’s production base will move to the Film Council in April 2000. There is no film institute anywhere else in the world which approaches the scale or range of activities offered Bernardo Bertolucci at the Fellowship awards ceremony by the bfi and it has been a privilege and a pleasure to chair the Institute. I confess for the Institute’s archival The Prince of Wales with bfi benefactor Sir J Paul Getty that when I started I was work. The presentation was unaware of the full range of made by our patron, His staff across the Institute, but bring the Institute together at activities undertaken by the Royal Highness, The Prince of the aim of putting the bfi on a one location on the South organisation but I am, and will Wales. firm financial footing has now Bank are also advancing remain, deeply impressed by been achieved. Our plans to steadily. In effect there is a the dedication and I would also like to thank Sir clear plan of action for the bfi professionalism of the staff Anthony Durant, Gus Macdonald, Steve Morrison Previous bfi Chairman over the next few years. who make the place run. Jeremy Thomas receiving and Allan Shiach who retired his bfi Fellowship By the time you read this I would also like to make as Governors during the year, review I shall have taken up mention here of our three new and to welcome as Director my position at the Film bfi Fellows: Jeremy Thomas and Deputy Director Council. But my connection and Bernardo Bertolucci respectively, John Woodward with the bfi is not ceasing and whose extraordinary body of and Jon Teckman who joined I shall still remain involved and work was recognised when the bfi early in 1998. engaged with its activities they received bfi Fellowships from a strategic and funding at the 42nd London Film position at the Film Council. Festival. It was also a real honour last January to watch 1998/99 also saw a terrific the presentation to Sir Paul final year for the bfi Production Getty of the 50th bfi Department with three feature Fellowship in recognition of his films: Love is the Devil, enormous contribution to the Alan Parker CBE Beautiful People and I Could bfi and particularly his support Chairman 03 Director’s report Twelve months is a brief period of time when viewed as part of the 66 year history of the British Film Institute but the work done during the past year, in refocusing, setting out to reach a broader audience and underlining our education remit, has now created a clear direction for the future. The bfi Library’s enquiry service (top left) Samirah Makhmalbaf, (left), winner of the bfi’s 1988 Sutherland Trophy Beautiful People (above), a Cannes Film Festival award winner for bfi Production Film preservation in action (left) at the J Paul Getty Conservation Centre 04 Crucially this fundamental reappraisal of the Institute took place cultural and educational objectives UK-wide, but in future we will film-related materials and expertise in order to encourage within the context of the desire of the Department for Culture, be funded by the Film Council rather than directly by the DCMS. ‘cine-literacy’ across a much wider audience base Media & Sport (DCMS) to establish a new strategic body, the Film Council. Without question the last year has been a tough Prior to these announcements but quickly after my appointment These structural changes which were announced in July 1998 one during which the bfi negotiated its own independence of the in 1998, and with the full support of the bfi’s Governors and may not appear revolutionary to the outside world but they have Government and underwent major structural change. This Chairman, I initiated a review of every single bfi activity in order set the bfi on course to be more efficient and valuable for those required both the commitment of the staff and unerring support to understand where we were strong and where we were weak. who use and want to work with the Institute, in other words our from the bfi Governors which never faltered. It soon became clear that the bfi had been drawn towards customers and partners. ‘super-serving’ a small group of committed cinephiles and The brief for the new Film Council is to develop a coherent academics and that a large proportion of our limited resources A number of additional criteria also set the terms of our new overall strategy for film culture and the development of a was being used on activities too distant from our prime area of policies: sustainable domestic film industry. These objectives are part of work – informal and formal education. I The bfi has to ensure that it acts as a UK-wide the broad picture set out in the DCMS policy document, A New organisation working with partners and is not Cultural Framework, which identifies the need to harness quality The Governors therefore decided to re-focus the bfi’s activities in predominantly London-centric and excellence in the fields of culture, media and sport; to raise the following ways: I The funding base of the bfi has to be secured by standards of education and training; to help develop future I By creating four main operating departments: focusing our activities and knowing when to say ‘no’ employment opportunities in the creative industries; and to Education I Private sector partners will increasingly be needed make opportunities available to as many people as possible. Collections to help support our activities both financially and to The Culture Secretary has also committed to establishing a Exhibition help us reach new audiences stronger regional focus for policies and programmes and a Production (which will be transferred next year to the new I Better public recognition of the bfi’s activities, greater strategic coherence between cultural and industrial Film Council) knowledge and resources needs to be achieved activities at a regional level. I By establishing new objectives based around the provision of educational activities relating to film and the moving Whilst concepts like ‘access’ and ‘education’ are at one level After lengthy discussions it was announced that the bfi will image straightforward, the way in which the bfi conducts its activities – continue as the key body delivering film and moving image I By prioritising real access to the bfi’s growing collections of from film programming to educational projects – must take into Construction of the bfi’s London IMAX ® Cinema (below) well under way in the summer of 1998 Angie Dickinson (above) in the bfi’s re- release of Point Blank The bfi at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival (above) for Love is the Devil Kate Winslet (left), her husband Jim Threapleton and Hideous Kinky cast members at the ‘98 LFF 05 account a broad audience ranging from the casual cinema-goer called upon the bfi, as the principal public sector body involved feature films, TV programmes, documentary footage, museum to the film academic. In addition, the bfi must seek to reflect the in film education, to “give priority to stimulating interest in, and objects, stills, posters, designs and even computer games. cultural diversity which shapes our society including widening understanding of, film among the general public and Encouraging greater access to these materials whilst geographical, ethnic and socio-economic differences. particularly among children, and developing a strategy to maintaining high standards of preservation and improving the increase and broaden the audience for film.” cataloguing and recording of our collections are the The new bfi structure with its four departments became department’s key priorities.