Producers Sought for FÁS STI / Magic Light Placement Programme

The Magic Light Producer Placement Programme is run by production company Magic Light Pictures, and funded by the Skillset Film Skills Fund as part of 'A Bigger Future' - the UK's Film Skills Strategy. By gaining a greater understanding of commercial processes, it is hoped that participants will develop the business acumen and market understanding to be able to initiate, finance and sell successful British and Irish films.

Applications for the programme are already underway in the UK to offer five places on the five month programme which will run from 26 April - September 2010. There is no participation fee for the programme; instead, Magic Light Pictures/FÁS Screen Training Ireland will pay the successful Irish candidate an allowance to participate.

The programme will be run from central London, and the majority of the placements will be based in central London. As a result, the successful producer will be expected to relocate from the Republic of Ireland so that they can be based in London for the five month duration of the programme. The successful candidate will be awarded a limited additional allowance to assist with relocation costs for this five month period.

The varied work placements will be along the length of the ‘film value chain’ from production, financing and distribution to sales, exhibition and marketing – ranging from spending time with financiers to working in a cinema box office. Participating placement companies on the 2008 Programme included:UKFC, BBC Films, Disney, Pathe, Icon, Shipleys, Olswang, Vue, City Screen, Freud Communications, and sales companies including Hanway, Salt, Bankside, Maximum/E1, Little Film Company, West End Film, Ealing Film Studios.

In addition, Magic Light Pictures intends offering each of the producers the opportunity to work with an international sales agent on a placement at the Cannes Film Festival this year.

This programme is aimed at giving a career boost to people who have already taken steps towards producing feature films, or may have produced their first one. Applicants for the place funded by FÁS Screen Training Ireland, supported by Bórd Scannán na hÉireann/Irish Film Board, will need to show in their applications how their work over the last eighteen months has benefited the Republic of Ireland film industry and how participation in the Producer Placement Programme will be of particular continuing benefit to the Republic of Ireland film industry in the future.

Applications to the programme can be made on the Magic Light/Producer Placement Programme website at www.producerplacementprogramme.eu. The deadline for applications is Friday March 5th.

Free Industry Newsletter

Subscribe to IFTN's industry newsletter - it's free and e-mailed directly to your inbox every week.
Click here to sign up.