THE BATMAN

Robert Pattinson as Batman in The Batman, a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures & ©DC Comics. ©2021 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

ROBERT PATTINSON STARS AS BRUCE WAYNE AND BATMAN IN THE LATEST MOVIE TO FEATURE THE CAPED CRUSADER AS HE STRIVES TO RID GOTHAM CITY OF CORRUPTION AND VIOLENCE. IN THE BATMAN, A KILLER IS TARGETING GOTHAM’S ELITE WHILE LEAVING A TRAIL OF CRYPTIC CLUES ACROSS THE CITY. JULIAN NEWBY REPORTS

WHETHER in graphic novels, TV series or movies, Gotham City is always depicted as an eerie, shadowy approximation of New York City. So it may surprise some cinemagoers to learn that in 2021’s The Batman, it was predominantly the UK cities of London and Liverpool, and the Scottish city of Glasgow, that were used as the backdrop.

Created by director, writer and producer Matt Reeves, along with screenwriter Peter Craig, the Warner Bros. Pictures movie depicts Gotham as a threatening, dark metropolis where evil can hide. “Gotham is a really scary place,” Reeves says, “and as a world is incredibly rich for a flmmaker.”

Craig says he and Reeves “wanted Gotham to be entirely alive, with the remnants of its corrupt history everywhere. One of the most exciting things about working on this was getting to experience Matt’s visual talent — and then having [production designer] James Chinlund on the other end of a speakerphone, feshing out ideas and sending us images. We had the advantage of working with those pictures in front of us: Batman standing at the edge of an unfnished skyscraper, or Gotham Square seen from a perch above. While leaning into that style, we still wanted to sidestep its deeper cynicism. We saw Gotham like Bruce Wayne did: a dangerous and troubled place, but a place worth saving.”

“I wanted to lean hard into the early Bob Kane and Bill Finger stories in which Batman was solving crimes as a means of describing Gotham as an incredibly corrupt place,” Reeves says. “So, I came up with the idea of having the character he is interacting with — the case he is involved with — being a new iteration of The Riddler as a serial killer who is targeting so-called pillars of society. And in the wake of the murders, through the crime scenes and cyphers he leaves behind directed at The Batman, The Riddler is revealing the truth about these individuals. In doing so, I felt that Batman’s journey to solve the case could also serve to uncover for him the history of corruption in Gotham. And because the cyphers are left for him, it gets personal and rocks him to his core. This is not a Batman in control,” he says. “This is a Batman in a little bit of a freefall.”

So where to fnd this “scary”, “corrupt” “dangerous and troubled place worth saving”?

Chinlund says that when creating Gotham, he and Reeves were “thinking about the efects of corruption and crime, and a bit about climate change, too. That helped us generate the visual rules that would guide us going forward. It really landed us in our own space: a contemporary world that you could believe is a part of America, similar to towns like Detroit and Cleveland, but at the same time, it’s entirely unique.”

Chinlund was also designing the city on the idea that Gotham had enjoyed a very prosperous heyday, but over the years, corruption led to decay. “As if time had stopped, much of the growth of the city was frozen in the past,” Chinlund says. “Then we incorporated a frozen attempt at modernisation, which allowed us to create these rusting hulks, these massive towers that remain incomplete. Looking at the construction of the World Trade Center in

Robert Pattinson (left) and director Matt Reeves. Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures & ©DC Comics. ©2021 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

“GOTHAM IS A REALLY SCARY PLACE AND AS A WORLD IS INCREDIBLY RICH FOR A FILMMAKER”MATT REEVES

the 1970s, for example, was a big inspiration; you saw these shards of steel going up into the skyline. I love the way those sorts of skeletal shapes in the skyline married with the Gothic shapes, allowing us to create a world that felt simultaneously modern, but not shiny and new. You could see those representations of the failure of the system in the skyline itself.”

Much of the production was initially created using virtual reality, which allowed Reeves, Chinlund and director of photography Greig Fraser, to design the sets, add camera and lighting and move around — and make changes to — the virtual sets before they were built.

Chinlund and his team had many sets to design and build, including the Iceberg Lounge, The Riddler’s apartment, the diner, Falcone’s loft and others too, which, he says, “created an amazing opportunity for us to build a backlot set of Gotham. That was one of the frst things we attacked, in addition to the iconic pieces like the Batcave and Wayne Tower.”

How to create the Batcave was of particular concern to Reeves and Chinlund. “The Batcave and Wayne Tower, both built on the stages at [the UK's] Leavesden Studios, were two sets that make a production designer wake up in the night in a cold sweat!” Chinlund says. “Those two sets have been executed so beautifully by so many in the past, how could we possibly create something new that the fans hadn’t seen before? Matt and I agreed that all we could do was deliver something that feels true and real to our story.”

The design team frst had to ask and answer a question: ‘If Wayne Tower was built in the 1920s, would there be an opportunity for a cave under it?’ “I was thinking about foundations,” Chinlund says. “I remembered there’s an underground train station at the Waldorf Astoria in New York and the myth, which I think is true, is that there’s a train parked there all the time for whenever the President is in town and if there’s ever an emergency, they could take him through this secret tunnel at the Waldorf and it would get him out of town discreetly. I always loved that idea and thought it was so romantic. I thought that if you were the Waynes and you had created this city, you would probably have your own secret train terminal under the tower. It created a great visual

Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne, leaving Gotham General Hospital, where Alfred Pennyworth is staying after being injured in one of the Riddler’s attacks. The building is actually the Walker Art gallery in Liverpool, England. Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures & ©DC Comics. ©2021 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

where you had an underground train station and a very skeletal glass elevator that led to the top of the tower.”

While the Batcave and Wayne Tower were designed and constructed at Leavesden, the entrance to the Batcave was an actual London location — the Kingsway Tram Tunnel, that once took doubledecker trams underground from Holborn, north of the Thames, to Waterloo, south of the river. The tunnel was decommissioned in 1952, but remains a piece of London transport history.

The locations team considered several US cities, including Chicago, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and New York, before deciding to base the main shoot in London. Chinlund had some doubts at frst, but once he had visited the UK cities of Manchester and Liverpool and the Scottish city of Glasgow — all of which can be reached from London in a couple of hours — he saw the value of basing cast and crew in the UK capital.

“We noticed a decayed Gothic layer that we just don’t have in the States,” Chinlund says. “It gave us a real opportunity to combine practical set builds and some Chicago location work with this amazing rich tapestry of architecture from the UK and to try and weave all that into an American city you’ve never seen before.”

In the end, location work included Liverpool, Glasgow and London, while Leavesden and Cardington Studios, both close to London, provided stages and back-lot space for the massive sets. Second-unit shooting also took place in Chicago, with stunt doubles on the motorbike and Batmobile, as well as drone footage that would be incorporated into the main footage in post-production.

But creating the Gotham skyline was problematic. “We realised it was going to be benefcial to fnd a location where we could shoot plates, which would allow us to judge the way the light refects of of other buildings,” Chinlund says. “We found a location in Lower Manhattan that we used to anchor the unfnished skyscraper and then rebuilt the world around it. That became a key part of the Tricorner Bridge area of Gotham. So, there is a piece of Lower Manhattan that was the kernel of our city after all.”

There was a day’s worth of aerial plates over Manhattan and Brooklyn, for broad shots that showed Gotham after heavy rain and floods. “We altered the cityscape, removed the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges, added the Tricorner Bridge, added a partially destroyed seawall and flooded Downtown Gotham,” visual effects supervisor Dan Lemmon says. “We also used plates from that aerial shoot at the beginning of the movie,

The Kingsway Tram tunnel on Southampton Row, London: Photo: Tony Hisgett

*SR 120, 108, 89 winter closures

when the Drifter rides back to Wayne Tower over the Tricorner Bridge — and again replaced the Brooklyn Bridge with the Tricorner Bridge and added a digital Drifter and a cafe racer.

“Panoramic photographs of Manhattan from the palisades of New Jersey served as a foundation for certain shots from The Riddler’s POV as well,” Lemmon says. “The same technique applied, replacing major elements of the skyline, adding the Tricorner Bridge, and then also creating digital elements for particular surrounds.”

Chinlund used Central Saint Martins art-and-design college in London to double as the Gotham City Police Department Command Center, as well as the morgue. “The architecture and patina of this building just lent itself so well to going way down in the bowels of the Gotham City Hospital, where they are understafed and underfunded.”

Other major sets included Gotham City Hall, whose interior was constructed at Cardington Studios in Bedford, north of London — one of the largest indoor spaces in Europe — while the neo-classical, grade-one listed St. George’s Hall in Liverpool doubled for the exterior. The set had to accommodate real stunts, where a car smashes through the doors and drives up the central staircase.

The way in which the various cities used as backdrops were stitched together for the completed flm, is well illustrated by a chase scene involving Batman jumping from a building and using his wing suit to break his fall.

The sequence begins on the rooftop of the Gotham City Police Department, which is actually a combination of the famous dockside Liver Building in Liverpool and the Chicago Board of Trade Building. Wide aerial shots of Batman standing on the parapet were shot on location in Liverpool, then altered in post to increase the height of the building and replace Liverpool’s waterfront with Gotham City.

The actual shot of Batman leaping from the building was flmed on a partial set at Leavesden Studios, with a camera strapped to the back of a stunt performer on wires. The stuntman only had around two-and-a-half metres of travel before he reached the bottom of the set, so the shot handed over to a digital Gotham City Police Department building and Batman as the wingsuit infated and began to take fight.

Batman’s descent through the urban canyon was based largely on LaSalle Street in Chicago, where the production shot extensive plates from a drone. “However, the drone didn’t have the correct fight dynamics and was not able to fy fast enough to realistically recreate wing-suit fight,” Lemmon says, “so, the VFX team used the Chicago footage as a springboard to create a grittier Gotham-ised street in CG that they could then race through with more appropriate fight dynamics. Matt wanted it to feel believable, so that you get to the end of the scene and say, ‘Oh my God, Rob Pattinson actually just few down the streets of Gotham in a wingsuit and landed without a parachute!’”

Pattinson was ever appreciative of Reeve’s level of attention to detail. “Matt is incredibly patient. He’s like a conductor of an orchestra, able to keep the entire story in a macro view in his mind the entire time. He’s never rushed, he will only move on when he feels like he’s got what he needs,” Pattinson says. “He isn’t afraid to stray a little from the Batman canon and he defnitely made some pretty bold stylistic choices, and that’s exciting.”

While the three UK cities gave director and designer most of what they wanted, the British weather didn’t. “The cold and rain during two UK winters made for difficult working conditions, but working with the British crew made up for the hostile weather,” Chinlund says. “To be able to tap into the tradition, the amazing craftsmanship of the artists in the UK, was really a dream come true. I was shuttling back and forth, so Grant Armstrong, supervising art director, was generous in helping me build this team and brought so many talented people to the table. Lee Sandales, our set decorator, did such beautiful work, top to bottom, and Andy Evans, our construction manager, is a legend and was so supportive of us the whole way through, and built some of the most beautiful sets I’ve ever seen.” The Necropolis Cemetary in Glasgow, Scotland, which was used for scenes that take place in Gotham Cemetery

TO BE ABLE TO TAP INTO THE TRADITION,

THE AMAZING CRAFTSMANSHIP OF THE ARTISTS IN THE UK, WAS REALLY A DREAM COME TRUE

JAMES CHINLUND

IN MID-2020, THE UK’S ENTIRE FILM AND TV PRODUCTION INDUSTRY GROUND TO A HALT AS THE WORLD TRIED TO FIGURE OUT ITS RESPONSE TO THE PANDEMIC. BUT, AS ANDY FRY REPORTS, RECOVERY WAS FAST THE BIG COMEBACK

Director Robert Eggers and crew on the set of The Northman. Photo: Aidan Monaghan. ©2022 Focus Features

FOLLOWING on from a record-breaking year in 2019 — that enjoyed £3.6bn in production — studios across the UK went dark, locations lay untouched and cast and crew were left to worry about their futures while isolated at home.

At that time, few would have predicted the speed of the recovery in 2021. Fuelled by a combination of pent-up demand and increased competition between streaming platforms, the UK reported production revenues of £5.64bn in 2021. That’s double the fgure in 2020 and £1.27bn higher than the pre-pandemic position.

Film has yet to regain its pre-pandemic level, reporting a fgure of £1.55bn as against £1.96bn in 2019. But the truly remarkable story is the growth in high-end TV. According to the BFI, this sector of production topped £4.09bn in 2021, nearly double the 2019 fgure. And the early signs are the 2022 will continue on the same trajectory.

British Film Commission chief executive Adrian Wootton says “the UK is enjoying a once-in-a-generation growth in production”. What is particularly noticeable about the recovery, he adds, is that it is not focused on one particular part of the UK. “The benefts are being felt right across our nations and regions, with large-scale investment in infrastructure that will directly beneft local communities. Existing production hubs are growing to accommodate demand and new hubs are developing, bringing with them thousands of new jobs.”

Wootton cites a couple of key factors in the speed of the recovery: “The government’s Film & TV Production Restart

Scheme played a key role in enabling the industry to get moving again quickly after the suspension in activity during 2020. But I also think the industry did a great job of introducing world-class COVID-19 compliance processes. After the frst few productions returned, clients quickly saw the UK was a safe and responsible place to work and came rushing back.”

As to the scale of the recovery, Wootton puts it down to the same factors that were driving growth pre-pandemic:

“The quality of the crews and infrastructure and the range of locations continue to be a major attraction. And then there is the UK tax incentive. Set at 25%, it is one of the world’s most attractive ofers — but more than that it’s extremely stable.

Producers who want to establish a long-term relationship with the UK know that it’s a very mature programme that continues to enjoy strong support from our policy-makers.”

Not to be overlooked either is that the UK continues to be home to a wealth of great acting talent: “At a time when productions haven’t been able to travel very easily because of COVID restrictions, being able to tap into the UK’s diverse on-screen talent pool while also accessing all those other advantages has been very benefcial,” Wootton says.

The BFI records that a total of 209 flms entered production in the UK during 2021, of which 55 of these were “inward investment flms” and contributed £1.28bn to the total. Nine of these were US studio-backed feature flms including The Batman (2022), Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), The Marvels (2023) and Mission: Impossible 7 (2023); non-US studio inward investment flms generated a spend of £283.7m.

For high-end TV, 2021 saw 211 productions base themselves in some part of the UK. Bridgerton (2020-), Havoc (2022), His Dark Materials – The Amber Spy Glass (2019-22), Killing Eve (2018-22), Outlander (2014-), A Very British Scandal (2021) and The Witcher: Blood (2022-) were just a few inward investments to take advantage of the UK’s diverse ofering. This was further bolstered by a rich domestic slate including The Amazing Mr. Blunden (2021), The Ipcress File (2022-), The Midwich Cuckoos, Shetland (2013-) and Without Sin (2022).

Looking at the UK story from a regional perspective, Northern Ireland continues to excel as a production hub for flm & TV. Having put itself on the map with its immaculate handling of HBO’s Game Of Thrones (2011-19), Northern Ireland has kept up the momentum by attracting a mix of flm and TV productions. Summarising 2021, Northern Ireland Screen CEO Richard Williams says: “We had two of the biggest TV dramas of the year broadcast; Line of Duty (2012-21) and Bloodlands (2021). It was also a privilege to co-host the Irish premiere of Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast (2021), in Belfast, with the Belfast Film Festival. The north coast also takes a leading role in Robert Eggers’ The Northman (2022), while the third series of Marcella (2016-), starring Anna Friel as an undercover detective in Belfast, captivated ITV viewers.”

Northern Ireland Screen head of production Andrew Reid says the province benefts from a mix of great crews, stunning locations and an impressive studio infrastructure that is capable of hosting both flm and high-end TV. “In recent times, we have been fortunate to have Paramount Pictures shooting their Dungeons & Dragons (2023) movie in Titanic Studios, while The Northman flmed in Belfast Harbour Studios. In addition, we have had numerous great TV series shooting on location across Northern Ireland.”

Viking action movie The Northman shot in 2020 and was forced to adapt its approach signifcantly because of the pandemic. With overseas locations of the table due to travel restrictions, the team had to recreate the Scandinavian look and feel of the flm in Northern Ireland, rethinking locations and set building and prepping everything from costumes and props to horse-training and armoury-safety during shutdown. Delayed by six months, the three-month shoot fnally began in August 2020 at Belfast Harbour Studios and on location at Torr Head (County Antrim) where a full Viking village was built.

There was a fear Northern Ireland’s industry might sufer when HBO’s Game Of Thrones ended, especially after the hotlyanticipated prequel House Of the Dragon (2022-) was located elsewhere. “But it’s been the reverse,” Reid says. “We’ve been careful to ensure we have a mix of productions here so that we don't become over-reliant on one type. For example, longrunning series give your workforce stability. But having a turnover of shorter-term projects means you can always be out in the market talking to people.”

One particular coup for Northern Ireland in 2021 was its frst Netfix production, The School For Good And Evil (2022). Directed by Paul Feig and based on the young-adult fantasy novels by Soman Chainani, the story follows a group of girls and boys who are taken to an institution and trained to become fairytale-like heroes and villains.

Commenting on the decision to base the production at

CLIENTS QUICKLY SAW THE UK WAS A SAFE AND RESPONSIBLE PLACE TO WORK

AND CAME RUSHING BACK ADRIAN WOOTON

Belfast Harbour Studios, Feig says: “This is a challenging flm to mount and their facilities ofer us everything we need and so much more for a production of this size. They have also been wonderful to work with and we can’t thank them and Northern Ireland Screen enough for all their support and enthusiasm. They’ve been all good and no evil!”

Looking ahead, Reid says a lot of efort is also going into future-proofng Northern Ireland’s ofer to clients. “A signifcant percentage of our annual budget goes directly into training the workforce of the future,” Reid says. “There are also some very exciting developments around virtual production, involving stakeholders like Ulster University and Belfast Harbour. On top of that, there’s a real appreciation here of the importance of ESG — by which I don’t just mean sustainability. Clients want to know that if they base a production somewhere, they are contributing to the long-term welfare of the local community.”

Unquestionably, Northern Ireland has benefted from having state-of-the-art studios as focal points for major productions. Wales is in a similar situation, having supplemented its natural location-based advantages with studios built to the highest standards. In October 2020, for example, media investor Great Point entered into an agreement to lease and manage Seren Stiwdios (formerly Pinewood Studios Wales) near Cardif. The 74,000 sq ft production base has played host to a range of high-profle productions including The Huntsman: Winter’s War (2016), Sherlock (2010-17), and Doctor Who (2005-). In 2021, visiting productions included Havoc (2022), a cinematic thriller starring Tom Hardy, Timothy Olyphant and Forest Whitaker.

South Wales is also home to both Dragon Studios and Wolf Studios; the latter owned by Bad Wolf — the producer of His Dark Materials (2019-22). Bad Wolf was founded in 2015 by Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter, both of whom have been longterm champions of production in Wales. Tranter says: “The talent base is a major factor behind us locating here, developing that base further and putting down our roots. Plus the incredible variety of landscapes and locations that Wales ofers means we keep overseas locations to a minimum.”

This message hasn’t been lost on the wider creative community: “Wolf Studios Wales has been permanently full for the last fve years and we have worked in two other studios during that period." A major development for Bad Wolf came in late 2021 when Sony Pictures Television acquired the company, including the studio hub. Wayne Garvie, president, international production, Sony Pictures Television says the Bad Wolf team “has built a tremendous business and established Wales as the home of some of the most fantastic tales of the age and now we aim to help them build still further.”

Garvie, whose company is also behind major series like The Crown (2016-/via its ownership of Left Bank Pictures) adds: “Wolf Studios is an incredible resource, a vast studio that can accommodate enormous scale, but there are opportunities for further studios, maybe more compact square-footage, maybe green-screen stages. We are looking at the possibility of further studio expansion — the advantages of having a permanent base is that you can give people jobs 52 weeks a year and it makes sense in terms of training and development.”

Thomasin McKenzie and Matt Smith in Last Night In Soho. Photo: Focus Features

In addition to developments at Seren and Wolf, there are also ambitious plans for a new Cardif-based creative hub called media.cymru. The £50m scheme involves 24 media production, broadcast, university and technology partners and is aiming to deliver a “world-class virtual studio". Professor Justin Lewis of Cardif University’s School of Journalism, Media and Culture, says: “After COVID-19, the need for digital innovation has never been more critical. The media.cymru programme focuses on making Cardif Capital Region a global hub for media innovation. It will give SMEs and startups opportunities to collaborate and innovate.”

Wales also benefts from the diversity and versatility of its locations. Parts of capital city Cardif, for example, were transformed into a London street for the second season of Amazon Prime’s Alex Rider (2020-) series. Netfix’s remake of DH Lawrence classic Lady Chatterley’s Lover, meanwhile, was spied flming in North Wales locations including Lake Vyrnwy. Sky Cinema’s Save the Cinema (2022), meanwhile, was a quirky look at 1990s Wales — featuring South Wales towns Carmarthen, Ammanford, Laugharne and Llandeilo. Starring Samantha Morton, Adeel Akhtar, Tom Felton and Jonathan Pryce, the flm focuses on a community’s battle to save a muchloved entertainment venue from developers.

Production in Scotland has also been booming in recent times, with a wealth of new flm and TV productions including Outlander (2014-), Good Omens (2019-22), A Very British Scandal (2021), The Lost King (2022), Indiana Jones 5 (2023) and Girl, written and directed by Adura Onashile. Isabel Davis, executive director of Screen Scotland, says the industry bounced back well after COVID. “Across 2021 we’ve seen a signifcant increase in flming, with Amazon’s The Rig (2022) and Anansi Boys flming at FirstStage Studios; Good Omens at The Pyramids; Indiana Jones taking over Glasgow City Centre; Apple’s Tetris (2022) showing Aberdeen’s versatility as it doubled for Moscow; and Britbox’s detective drama Crime (2021-) shooting across Edinburgh and Glasgow.”

Screen Scotland screen commission ofcer Caris Pittendreigh says “producers have always been attracted to Scotland for its locations. Our scenic landscape has doubled for everywhere from Northern Canada to South America, while Glasgow has stood in for New York, San Francisco and Philadelphia. Then there’s the Gothic architecture and cobbled streets of Edinburgh as well as thousands of castles that vary in style and period. We’ve even had HBO’s hit series Succession (2018-) coming to flm in Dundee.”

All of this is still a magnet for production, Pittendreigh says, “but the real transformation we’re seeing is because of the constellation of studios that are being developed across the central belt of Scotland.”

In addition to the FirstStage projects, which both benefted from the studio’s 80-feet plus height: “We’ve had Outlander occupying Ward Park in Cumbernauld for a long time while West Lothian’s Pyramids has played host to Outlaw King (2018) and Shetland. There’s also the Kelvin Hall Development which hosted Screw (2022-), a six-part series for Channel 4 set in a prison.”

More expansion is on the way, Pittendreigh says, with the acquisition of Ward Park by Hackman Capital Partners and Square Mile Capital, and The Pyramids by London & Regional. Away from the Glasgow/Edinburgh axis, there is also Alba Studios, a purpose-built complex situated in the Outer Hebrides. “I also think we could see Dundee emerge as a postproduction and animation hub. It has already established itself as a gaming centre of excellence.”

In terms of priorities, she says that Scotland is embarking on a “very aggressive skills strategy. We’re going to need a

Actors Vicky McClure and Otto Farrant mid-shoot on Bristol's Cumberland Basin, a location for Amazon’s spy thriller Alex Rider. Photo: Michelle Scoplin

lot of new talent to meet the growth in demand and we’re working with the industry to achieve that.” One example is the Outlander Training Programme, which has been ofering traineeships since back in 2014.

Jennifer Reynolds, Glasgow Film Ofce commissioner, says her city has had a remarkably strong post-pandemic recovery, reporting £42.4m in production expenditure for 2021 — a fgure boosted by delayed 2020 projects. Recent highlights have included The Batman (2022), which used a cemetery and former psychiatric hospital in the city; Batgirl (2022) which used the city to double for Gotham City; and Indiana Jones 5, which transformed a main city street into a 1960s New York parade. “I think we’re really benefting from word-of-mouth,” Reynolds says. “So many location managers have had good experiences that the message travels. One thing we’ve been known for since World War Z in 2011 is that we have a very co-operative local authority. If a production needs to shut down roads, for example, then we’ll do our best.”

The city’s Victorian architecture has made Glasgow a great place for doubling, Reynolds says, “but the thing that really works in our favour is the city’s grid system — which is perfect for recreating the US.”

The positive story in the UK nations is replicated in the regions, with the North of England hosting production from the West coast to the East coast. Liverpool bounced back from COVID-19 by generating £18.7m of inward investment in 2021, equating to 250 productions and 1,100 flm days. Highlights in a busy year included Midas Man, a biopic of Beatles manager Brian Epstein. Iconic locations used in the movie included Port Sunlight’s Hulme Hall, where The Beatles played their frst concert after drummer Ringo Starr joined the band.

In recent years, Liverpool has been a magnet for domestic TV productions including Doctor Who, Peaky Blinders (201322) and The Responder (2022-). But the city has also shown itself capable of hosting major flm projects. In 2021, the city hosted The Batman, with director Matt Reeves choosing the city because he wanted Gotham City “to feel like an American city you’d never been to”. Using famous landmarks like St George’s Hall and the Royal Liver Building for their Gothic architecture, the production then added a Gotham-esque skyline in post-production.

Liverpool’s ability to double was also evident in ITV’s stylish new thriller series The Ipcress File, where the city was used to recreate 1960s London and Berlin. Similarly, Liverpool’s iconic Adelphi Hotel stood in for New York’s St Regis for the upcoming feature flm Dali Land.

Liverpool has been keen to consolidate its progress by providing ever more reasons for producers to return to the city. One development was the introduction of the Liverpool City Region Production Fund, which is able to ofer up to £500,000 to projects. Productions to have benefted to date include TV series Time (2021-) and Help (2021).

More signifcant, perhaps, is the city’s attempt to become the ‘Hollywood of the North’ by opening up studio space. One long-cherished ambition is to convert a derelict Littlewoods department store into a state-of-the-art flm studio.

And the Liverpool Film Ofce (LFO) recently opened The Depot, a new flm and television shooting space that comprises two purpose-built, 20,000 sq ft units.

The LFO predicts that The Depot will generate a £24m economic boost for the regional economy, creating 360 new jobs and 760 indirect jobs in the process. LFO head Lynn Saunders says: “We’ve been campaigning for studio space since before Samuel L Jackson was running around the city in a kilt (The 51st State/2002). For us it’s more than a space for sets, it’s an opportunity to build a production hub, where we can futureproof Liverpool’s position.”

Writer Jimmy McGovern, whose series Time (2021-) benefted from the LCR Funds, adds: “Everyone knows how great the city is in hosting productions, but we can’t always complete a shoot here due to limited capacity. These studios will be a huge shot in the arm — especially for the talented army of people who make the magic happen of-screen.”

Liverpool is not the only Northern production hub of note. Nearby Manchester has long been established as a key focal point for domestic production — for example for BBC, ITV and

WE’RE GOING TO NEED A LOT OF NEW TALENT TO MEET THE GROWTH IN

DEMAND AND WE’RE WORKING WITH THE INDUSTRY TO ACHIEVE THAT”

CARIS PITTENDREIGH “

Sky. But these days it is also attracting investment from global streamers. Productions to have shot in the city in 2021 include Wedding Season for Disney+ and Stay Close (2021) for Netfix. Local flm agency Screen Manchester says Amazon Studios and Apple TV+ have also made the city their home in 2021.

Screen Manchester reckons it dealt with 500 production enquiries in 2021 and serviced over 300 productions. This equated to £5.4m on-location spend. According to Screen Manchester flm ofce manager Bobby Cochrane, a key recent development has been the launch of a talent database, which is run by crew & facilities manager Elli Metcalfe: “It is important to make sure we are in direct contact with freelancers from all areas of the flm and TV industry. There are always gaps to be flled and if global producers know they can fnd who they are looking for in our region without bringing in staf from further afeld we will have achieved our main objective.”

Manchester has proved popular with productions seeking to double the city for New York (for instance The Crown and Morbius/2022). But another key USP for Manchester is the volume of studio space it already has up and running. This includes 80,000 sq ft of purpose-built stage at Space Studios and a further 40,000 sq ft of shooting space at Sharp Project. While there is still room to host new productions, Space Studios’ studio manager Dean Sinacola confrms that “2022 and indeed 2023 are already looking busy”. Space Studios sales manager Mark Hackett adds: “As soon as I arrived at Space Studios and experienced what Manchester has to ofer I realised we have so much to shout about. As word spreads, more decision-makers are exploring options and several have already made the decision to move projects North.”

Another crucial part of the Northern England story is Yorkshire, which has built a strong production infrastructure over the last two decades. Led strategically by Screen Yorkshire, the country has hosted almost 4,000 flming days since 2019. Productions supported over the past year include Hollywood franchises, Mission: Impossible 7 (2023) and Indiana Jones 5, as well as UK flms The Railway Children Return (2022) and Emily. TV dramas include Gentleman Jack (2019-), The Witcher (2019), All Creatures Great and Small (2020) and Confessions of Frannie Langton.

Blessed with a superb mix of urban, rural and coastal locations, Screen Yorkshire has been a pioneer on various fronts over the years. Its Yorkshire Content Fund has partfnanced more than 50 productions while its Crewing Service, launched in July 2020, has facilitated more than 4,000 days of work. Partly as a result of its eforts, the screen industries in Yorkshire & Humber are estimated to support some 12,000 jobs with a turnover of more than £1bn.

Like the other Northern hubs, Yorkshire has made studio space a priority. Flexible build spaces such as Church Fenton and Peregrine Studios have hosted high-end period dramas including Gentleman Jack and Victoria (2016-19), as well as feature flms like Hope Gap (2019) and Ofcial Secrets (2019). Also coming soon is Versa Leeds Studios, a new 130,000 sq ft facility that is set to open soon, a short distance from existing Leeds facilities Prime Studios and Studio 81.

The Versa development is interesting both at a Yorkshire and a national level. The company has already opened a West London facility and is planning to open a Manchester studio too. Executive director of Versa Charlie Ingall says: “Our vision is a network of studios across the UK to meet the growing demand for content.”

Away from the North, the UK’s sleeping giant Birmingham looks set to see a surge in production — with the new Digbethbased Mercian Studios development lined-up to host reality TV show MasterChef and a planned Peaky Blinders movie. Further advanced is the southwest city of Bristol, home to The Bottle Yard Studios. Here, Laura Aviles, senior Bristol flm manager, Bristol City Council, says 2021 was a hugely busy year. “We welcomed an unprecedented number of dramas to flm at The Bottle Yard Studios and the diverse locations supported by Bristol Film Ofce (BFO). We’ve hosted memorable performances from Christopher Walken who walked Bristol’s streets (and painted over a Banksy); Celine Buckens, who gave us the character we loved to hate in Showtrial's Talitha Campbell; and Lesley Sharp as a Bristol-based detective in Before We Die [2021-].”

The BFO says that flm and TV production was worth £12.6m in Bristol in 2020-21 (653 flming days). That was lower than the previous fnancial year, but “fully expected” after COVID-19, according to Aviles. “What is heartening is that once production resumed, Bristol went on to register similar levels of spend to previous years. We hope 2021/22 will match, or exceed, pre-pandemic levels.”

Productions to use the city and surrounding area have included War of the Worlds (2019-), The Pursuit of Love (2021) and comedy thriller The Outlaws (2021-/BBC) starring Stephen Merchant and Christopher Walken. The Last Bus (2022) and Becoming Elizabeth (2022) both flmed at the Bottle Yard and on location across Bristol.

Amazon Prime’s Alex Rider used Bristol extensively for series two, with Bristol doubling as London in the new eightpart thriller. Signifcant sets including the central setting of the MI6 division known as The Department, were built inside A Bond Warehouse in the Cumberland Basin, while flming also took place at other locations around Bristol. Producer Richard Burrell says: “Relocating Alex Rider from London to Bristol was a decision born from COVID-19 but it proved to be a successful choice on every level. The range of locations that Bristol and the West Country gave us were amazing.”

Bristol also hosted ITV’s new series The Long Call (2021), the frst British primetime drama to place a gay detective at the centre of its story. The show’s producer Angie Daniell says: "What I love about shooting in Bristol is that for a relatively compact city it ofers such a variety of locations: from a period private house in Clifton to a converted warehouse in Brislington. As our story was set in Devon, it was a bonus to be able to 'cheat' the coast in Portishead and on Severn Beach.”

One southwest of England location that has clearly experienced a surge of interest in recent years is Cornwall — thanks to productions like Poldark (2015-19), Doc Martin (2004-22), Delicious (2016-19) and Fisherman’s Friends (2019). In 2021, the rugged coastal county was back on the map with news that a sequel to Fisherman’s Friends has started principal photography. Even more signifcant for the county are reports that the new Game of Thrones sequel House of the Dragon (2022-) has been spied flming around Holywell Bay. If that production has a good experience in Cornwall then it may pave the way for other large scale productions to take advantage of the region’s spectacular locations.

This might also provide a boost to the coastal city of Plymouth, which sits on the Devon/Cornwall border. The city revealed in 2021 that it is working with Creative England on an initiative to encourage producers to consider the city as a base for production. Amanda Lee, marketing manager within the economic development team at Plymouth City Council,

Cush Jumbo and Bethany Antonia in Netfix series Stay Close. Photo: Vishal Sharma

is leading on the development of Film Plymouth and says: “Plymouth has such a wealth of locations and facilities on ofer, from historic cobbled streets to wide open boulevards and the open waters of Plymouth Sound to the brutalist architecture of the post-war city centre. From facilitating location support and permissions, to providing links to supply chain businesses, we’re ready for inquiries.”

One notable trend across the UK’s nations and regions is their ability to double as London. The BFC’s Wootton welcomes this development because it keeps both international and domestic producers rooted in the UK. “The beauty of high-end TV is that it is much more fexible than flm, so it’s not so tied to London and the Southeast,” he says.

In his capacity as head of Film London, a role he holds alongside his BFC position, Wootton says this sharing out of high-end TV has not adversely afected the capital’s production business. “Like everywhere else, there was a short suspension followed by recovery.”

London’s ofer is built around a combination of world-class studio space and iconic locations, Wootton says: “Pinewood, Shepperton and Leavesden continue to attract some of the world’s biggest movies, while the city itself has welcomed a wide range of productions. London has developed a reputation as a flm-friendly city where all the main agencies pull together to facilitate production requirements.”

Wootton says a snapshot of recent productions shows the versatility of the city. “Film and TV producers have done an amazing job opening up the visual vocabulary of London. In 2022, Netfix’s The Crown was flming in South London while action comedy Sumotherhood shot around Hackney in northeast London. We’ve also seen productions working at the heart of the city — from the new Luther (2022) feature flm in Piccadilly to Edgar Wright’s Last Night In Soho (2021), which was like a love letter to this famous part of London.”

Disney’s hit movie Cruella (2021) was another high-profle production that showcased the richness of London’s location database. Speaking to Film London, Cruella location manager Ali James revealed that around 40 locations were in London: “We visited old favourites, including Greenwich Naval College, but we also spent a lot of time shooting small sequences in quirky back streets. There was a memorable day on Portobello Road, which was a lot of work but looked fantastic. Being able to work with iconic London department store Liberty was a real bonus. Liberty was great and so supportive of our flming.”

One issue that regularly comes up with regard to London and its surroundings is whether it can keep up with the astonishing pace of demand. Wootton says: “If you look across the southeast there are numerous studio developments aimed at providing the necessary space. Pinewood is progressing well with its planned £500m expansion while the new Sky Studios Elstree complex is poised to open, with 13 stages from 10,00030,000 sq ft.” Elsewhere, Netfix spent around $1bn making 60 shows in the UK during 2021 — and is now in the process of doubling the size of its base at Pinewood-owned Shepperton Studios. Meanwhile, Wootton says, Dagenham-based Eastbrook Studios is expected to be fully operational by 2023.

“We’re not complacent,” Wootton adds. “We reckon the UK industry needs 50,000 new jobs in the next fve years and there’s a lot of investment going into meeting that need. Importantly, growth of this magnitude is also an opportunity for us to broaden the range of voices in the sector by recruiting a diverse young workforce.”