All you need to know about Screen Yorkshire - the team who backed Peaky Blinders, Official Secrets and All Creatures Great and Small

Screen Yorkshire chief executive Sally Joynson photographed outside Screen Yorkshire on Leeds's Calls. Picture by Tony Johnson.Screen Yorkshire chief executive Sally Joynson photographed outside Screen Yorkshire on Leeds's Calls. Picture by Tony Johnson.
Screen Yorkshire chief executive Sally Joynson photographed outside Screen Yorkshire on Leeds's Calls. Picture by Tony Johnson.
Film and television in the region is booming - and one agency as been at the heart of such monumental growth.

Who is it?

Screen Yorkshire - it was established as one of nine regional screen agencies by the UK Film Council in 2002, launching its first production fund in 2003 and going on to invest in British films like the BAFTA award-winning This is England.

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Copies of the documentary on Josh Warrington, Fighting for a City, which Screen Yorkshire was involved in. Picture by Simon Hulme.Copies of the documentary on Josh Warrington, Fighting for a City, which Screen Yorkshire was involved in. Picture by Simon Hulme.
Copies of the documentary on Josh Warrington, Fighting for a City, which Screen Yorkshire was involved in. Picture by Simon Hulme.

In 2011, Screen Yorkshire became a stand-alone private company specialising in commercial content investment and establishing the Yorkshire Content Fund (YCF), which to date has brought more than 40 productions to Yorkshire and the Humber.

It helps to fund productions in the region, making sure that not only the county's diverse locations are put to impressive use and liaising with producers from around the world, but pushing for local jobs too.

The YCF, a public-private investment scheme, was originally supported by millions of pounds of European Regional Development Fund money.

Screen Yorkshire usually finances around 10 to 15 per cent of projects.

Shibden Hall in Halifax, the setting for Gentleman Jack. Pictyre by Jonathan Gawthorpe.Shibden Hall in Halifax, the setting for Gentleman Jack. Pictyre by Jonathan Gawthorpe.
Shibden Hall in Halifax, the setting for Gentleman Jack. Pictyre by Jonathan Gawthorpe.

Who's in charge?

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Sally Joynson is the chief executive officer, taking the role in 2006.

She sits on several advisory boards including those of the National Science and Media Museum, Digital Creativity Labs, and the Yorkshire and North-East Film Archives.

She also played a key role in the bid to bring Channel 4 to Leeds, and just last week received an Honorary Fellowship from Leeds Trinity University for her instrumental part in growing Yorkshire's screen industries.

What films and TV shows has it played a part in?

Plenty.

Berberian Sound Studio, This Is England, Peaky Blinders, The Great Train Robbery, Death Comes to Pemberley, Hank Zipzer, Testament of Youth, A Royal Night Out, Swallows and Amazons, Dark Angel, Dad's Army (the recent film), Jonathan Strange and Dr Norrell, National Treasure, Journeyman, Ghost Stories, Fighting for a City, Ackley Bridge, Yardie, The ABC Murders, Victoria, Gentleman Jack and more.

What else does it do?

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The agency runs Beyond Brontës, a programme designed to break down the barriers that can prevent young people from entering the screen industries. This includes internships, careers information, one to one support, training and mentoring. The scheme aims to increase opportunities for people from ethnic minority and working class backgrounds, although applications for the latest round of hopefuls recently closed.

Its Boot Camp - supported by ScreenSkills using National Lottery funds awarded by the BFI as part of the Future film Skills programme - is a development scheme for prospective new entrants into the film and television industry. It seeks to provide an "enhanced and accelerated bridge between training and the industry" through an intensive three-day programme.

Connected Campus is a university support network established by Screen Yorkshire as part of its growth plan. Working with universities at both a strategic and delivery level, Connected Campus facilitates access to Screen Yorkshire’s global industry links and expertise. A recent example is of students working on the Quantaform Series.

And what productions has it been involved with which are due to come out?

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Downton Abbey: The Movie, The Personal History of David Copperfield, Official Secrets, Everybody's Talking About Jamie and the remake of All Creatures Great and Small are among them.

How big is the film and television industry in Yorkshire?

Big, and getting bigger.

In 2017 data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) revealed that between 2009 and 2015, the region’s screen industries grew faster than anywhere else in the UK, including London and the South East. Our Film Office, launched in 2018, is designed to grow production further – and with a special emphasis on the international market.

The industry generated an annual turnover of £424m across 590 creative businesses (an increase of 247 per cent against the UK average of 118 per son)

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The number of business units across Yorkshire and Humber grew 57 per cent compared to the UK average of 47 per cent,

Employment across the film and TV industries in the region grew 88 per cent against a UK average of 32 per cent.

Such statistics - in no small part due to Screen Yorkshire's work - are set to be buoyed by Channel 4's move to Leeds this year, this week's announcement of a new National Film and Television school hub, as well as a new state-of-the-art studio planned in the city.

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There are a range of independent production companies in Leeds, including True North, Daisybeck Studios, Duck Soup and True Vision.

The Garden Productions, the ITV Studios-backed production company behind 24 Hours in A&E and 24 Hours in Police Custody, has also opened a base in Leeds.

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