The BFI has today announced the next selection of projects to be supported by its Lottery Transition Fund for Audience Development. A further 22 projects from across the UK dedicated to delivering a wide range of audience development activities for specialised and British film will receive funding totalling £371,324.80 and take the total number of projects helped to 59.
The Transition Fund for Audience Development was set up swiftly by the BFI in order to support audience development projects facing budget cuts in funding as a result of the changes in the national and regional film funding landscape which have taken place before a new film strategy and funding priorities come into effect from April 2012.
The projects funded, all of which demonstrated that their funding for core activities has been significantly reduced or withdrawn for the financial year 2011-12, represents a diverse range of activities and a wide geographical spread. The projects announced today include the Independent Cinema Office (ICO), the national organisation for the development and support of independent film exhibition in the UK, the Oska Bright International film and digital media festival which features work created by people with learning disabilities, The Birmingham Black Film Festival which promotes the work of local black film makers, and The Byre Theatre in St. Andrews, Fife which shows a diverse range of art house and non-mainstream cinema reflective of the local audience.
Peter Buckingham, Head of Distribution and Exhibition, BFI, said, “We have moved as swiftly as possible to ensure that film organisations are able to survive in this period of transition, and that audiences can continue to benefit from the important work that they do. Collectively these organisations contribute hugely to the access and promotion of film in the UK. They are incredibly valuable which is why it has been important for the BFI to help them.”
The projects which have received funding in this second slate of awards are as follows:
| Project Title | Amount | |
| Amber Side Cinema , Newcastle | £6,000 | The Side Cinema run by the Amber Film & Photography Collective shows a range new and classic world cinema alongside films from the collective's local human documentary archive. |
| Animated Exeter | £6,300 | Animated Exeter is now the premier animation festival in the South West |
| Belfast Film Festival | £30,667.50 | The Belfast Film Festival is a year round programme of film events that is entertaining, provocative and provides a platform for cultural debate. |
| Birmingham International Film Festival | £4,950 | The Birmingham Black Film Festival promotes the work of local black film makers and is the only event of its kind in the West Midlands. |
| Film Junkies, Bournemouth | £5,052 | The Bournemouth YMCA's Film Junkies programme produces and screens films highlighting social issues for young people in the South of England as well as organising the One Voice Festival screenings films made by young people outside of formal education. |
| Byre Theatre of St Andrews | £3,420 | The Byre Theatre in St. Andrews, Fife shows a diverse range of art house and non-mainstream cinema reflective of the local audience |
| Cambridge Film Trust | £20,700 | The Cambridge Film Trust delivers screenings, special events and tailor-made projects which enable the widest possible audience to be moved by, learn about and interact with the moving image. |
| The Oska Bright Film Festival | £4,500 | Carousel is an award winning arts organisation based in Brighton that runs the Oska Bright International film and digital media festival featuring work made by people with a learning disability. |
| Cineclub - The Young Filmmakers Network | £43,362 | Cineclub's Membership network provides resources, support and a screening programme for participating schools across England. |
| Cornwall Film Festival | £7,200 | The 2011 Cornwall Film Festival will take place in Newquay to develop a new and larger audience for their annual celebration of Cornish and International film making. |
| Exposures Student Film Festival | £4,500 | Exposures Student Film Festival provides a rare opportunity for audiences in Manchester/North West to see what the next generation of film talent. |
| Flatpack Festival | £14,400 | Flatpack Festival aims to make audience engagement with film a creative process by delivering unique social experiences through the use of innovative screening venues in and around Birmingham. |
| Independent Cinema Office | £106,650 | The ICO is the national organisation for the development and support of independent film exhibition in the UK. |
| The Bram Stoker Film Festival | £3,600 | Held in Yorkshire, this festival is curated around the central themes of gothic horror and the Bram Stoker novels |
| London International Animation Film Festival | £7,200 | The London International Animation Festival is the UK's largest animation festival, with a 10-day festival at the Barbican and several other London venues. |
| London Screen Study Collection | £10,248.30 | Collects viewing copies of all London-related film and video, making these freely available, in addition to curating portable exhibitions and public screening programmes |
| Power to the Pixel Cross Media Forum | £29,700 | Power to the Pixel's Cross Media Forum supports the UK film community in developing new ways of engaging with film audiences on different platforms and using digital media |
| Quad Cinema, Derby | £10,000 | The QUAD cinema Derby organises the ID Fest, the biennial film festival investigating identity through contemporary and archive film. |
| Reel Solutions - Screenwaves | £3,600 | Screenwaves aims to bring specialised films to rural audiences across North Yorkshire. |
| Regional Screen Scotland | £27,000 | Regional Screen Scotland is a development agency that aims to serve film audiences in remote and under-provided communities by providing funding, information and assistance as well as the Screen Machine mobile cinema increasing the availability of specialised films in areas that rarely have access to non-mainstream cinema. |
| The Africa in Motion Film Festival (Stop and Stir Arts) | £4,500 | The Africa in Motion Film Festival in Edinburgh aims to introduce Scottish audiences to the brilliance of African cinema and to overcome the under representation of African film in British cinema-going culture. |
| Theatr Gwaun Community Trust | £17,775 | The Cinema at Theatr Gwuan is enabling audiences in Fishguard to see specialised and British films in a community where the next closest cinema is 15 miles away. |
