Where were you on the weekend of 27-29 July this year? There is a good chance you were in the cinema (5.5 million people in the UK were) and the UK can boast record cinema admissions this summer. UK film talent, both in front of and behind the camera, remains high- profile and will doubtless be in the headlines this month on the occasion of the 51st London Film Festival. You could be forgiven, then, for assuming that the star of the UK film business shines as brightly as ever.
In fact, the UK film business needs to justify every element of its name now more than ever before. To what extent is it a UK-centric business and to what extent can it remain one? How will it manage the challenges that digital technology is levelling at the analogue format of film? Above all, can it properly call itself a business and how can it persuade new sources of finance that it is? Lawyers working with clients in this industry need a broader range of skills and expertise than ever before in order to advise their clients effectively.
