Film production in Birmingham could 'boost region' as a whole, according to Mayor
The cultural transformation of the Digbeth area of Birmingham could spread to other parts of the region, according to the Mayor of the West Midlands.
Richard Parker said he has been approached by investors expressing interest about the possibility of building new film studios in the Black Country.
This followed the announcement earlier this year of plans to build Production Central WM which is a new film production office to connect producers with set locations, local crew and suppliers needed to bring more big and small screen blockbusters to the region.
Another ambitious project in Digbeth is the launch of the Warwick Bar Prospectus, which sets out a vision of an area covering the size of 22 football pitches with the potential of 1,700 new homes and 110,000sq ft of creative workspaces.
Write and director Steven Knight said filming of the new Peaky Blinders movie had taken place at his Digbeth Loc studios.
And the BBC has transferred its regional Midlands HQ to the new Tea Factory site in Digbeth, along with relocating a number of TV productions there.
Mr Parker said: “We will be investing in (Production Central) that will help drive more productions and capacity for creative industries here.
“That initiative was launched in Digbeth but I have been approached by investors who want to build film studios in the Black Country.
“And I don’t want anyone to lose sense of that. Birmingham is important but I’m the Mayor of the whole region.
“It’s important we get the leverage from that investment in Birmingham in other parts of the region. That will be a priority for me going forward.
“We will be supporting those investors who are keen to build film studios in the Black Country.”
Mr Parker also said he wants to take lessons on how he and the West Midlands Combined Authority supported Birmingham City FC and Knighthead’s plans, such as extending the Midland Metro the serve the £3 billion development.
He said: “In Walsall, we are doing that around supporting aspects of the defence industry.
“This includes a major defence contractor based in Walsall that’s bidding for a large contract for the Ministry of Defence (MOD). We’ve been supporting them with discussions with the MOD.
“We can help them position themselves and look at sites we can free up for them as well as how we can support them on the skills agenda so that if they are successful, there is the capacity for them in this region, we can help them access the skills they need and ensure the hundreds of new jobs they create are going to people in this part of the region.
“We’ve developed approaches on how we want to get things done and do things so that they’ve got the support of all the key stakeholders and that support is framed around the requirements of those investors that want to create jobs here.”
