Beyond the box office: the cultural importance of film
Posted on 4 January 2011
This will be one of the questions debated by a panel of experts at a special event Beyond the Box Office on Friday, 7 January 2011 at the University of York. Organised by the UK Film Council, Screen Yorkshire and the University, the event is free and open to anyone with an interest in film.
The debate is likely to range across a number of key issues including how audiences perceive a film’s nationality and origins, the influence of broadcasters, distributors and exhibitors, and how the arrival of the digital age affects the audience
Professor Andrew Higson
Held in the superb new £24 million Department of Theatre, Film and Television at Heslington East, the presentations and debate from 2.30 to 4.30pm will be chaired by University of York Professor of Film and Television Andrew Higson.
Professor Higson said: “The debate is likely to range across a number of key issues including how audiences perceive a film’s nationality and origins, the influence of broadcasters, distributors and exhibitors, and how the arrival of the digital age affects the audience.”
Sally Joynson, Chief Executive of Screen Yorkshire, who will be opening the event, said: “Film is one of the key art forms in all our lives now and Yorkshire has become a leading production base in recent years, hosting films such as The Damned United, Red Riding, Brideshead Revisited and Andrea Arnold’s new version of Wuthering Heights. This event will stimulate us to think further about how film can benefit society culturally and there should be some very interesting debate.”
At the heart of the event will be a presentation about the UK Film Council’s study Stories we tell ourselves – the Cultural Impact of UK films 1946-2006 by Ian Christie, Professor of Film and Media History at Birkbeck College, London and Bertrand Moullier from research company Narval Media.
Carol Comley, Head of Strategic Development at the UK Film Council, will explain why the UK Film Council commissioned the study. Participating in the discussion will be Andy Harries, Chief Executive of Left Bank Pictures and producer of The Damned United and The Queen, Estelle Morris, former Secretary of State for Education and Skills and Minister for the Arts, and Duncan Petrie, Professor of Film and Television at the University of York. Each will offer their own thoughts on the cultural impact of film.
The debate will be followed by a reception and optional tour of the University’s impressive new Department of Theatre, Film and Television facilities which include two theatres, two television studios, a large sound stage, production laboratories and extensive post-production facilities as well as a digital cinema.
Anyone wishing to attend can reserve a place by contacting info@screenyorkshire.co.uk.
Notes to editors:
- Stories we tell ourselves – the Cultural Impact of UK films 1946-2006 can be read online at www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/media/pdf/f/i/CIReport_010709.pdf and reports from other debates on the report and the subject can be downloaded at www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/culturalimpactseminars
- For more information on The University of York’s Department of Theatre, Film and Television visit www.york.ac.uk/depts/tft/
- For more information on the UK Film Council visit www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk
- For more information on Screen Yorkshire visit www.screenyorkshire.co.uk
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