Sam Ampah hosts panel at Soho Media Club’s ‘Be You’ Festival

Alliotts are proud to sponsor Soho Media Club's 'Be You' Festival.

l-r Roger Evans, Sam Ampah, Jessica Elliott and Clare Anyiam-Osigwe

Alliotts’ Media Team aims to partner with organisations who actively support film makers, and others, who may not have had an easy path entering the media industry.

We were proud to sponsor Soho Media Club’s ‘Be You’ Festival – a one day summer festival devoted to sparking a ‘progressive conversation about the visible and hidden challenges of diversity, inclusion, belonging and equity in film and TV.’

The day was packed full of talks, workshops, and screenings, with our very own media specialist Sam Ampah hosting a discussion panel ‘How to attract funding for your diverse film’.

Sam was joined on the panel by Jessica Elliott – owner of JE Management; Roger Evans – production manager and consultant to Peacock film finance, and Clare Anyiam-Osigwe – award winning film director and screenwriter.

Filmmakers looking for funding for their project were able to tap into the expertise and skills of panel and other guests.

Here are some of the main takeaways from the day:

Be over prepared

• The first and most important thing is to have a firm idea of your project and your target market and audience; that helps you make the connections you need and draft a synopsis that will really pack a punch. Often time is limited, financiers and investors will only be able to read a very short synopsis, and funding will be limited. Make sure you have a punchy synopsis prepared and aimed at the people you want to impress. You’ll be in a competitive environment and will need to stand out!

Be creative….with a business sense!

• Many people will have strong creative visions for their projects, which is fantastic, but unless you can self-fund there will need to be an element of compromise. Find out where there are gaps in the market and what the industry is looking for, then see if you can fit your own ideas into what people want to find (and fund).

Take advantage of help that is already there

• Many organisations offer grants and commitments to projects they believe are improving diversity – they often need to fulfil commitments and so will be actively searching for projects that are celebrating diversity. ITV and the BFI (British Film Institute) for example. Financial support from these organisations and similar offering support will be competitive, but are always worth looking into. It’s good to attend events hosted by these organisations to establish connections.

Support each other

• Although the very nature of the industry can be competitive, it’s so important to support each other and share information and resources.
• Always be prepared to leap on an opportunity, and where you can always be prepared to give someone else an opportunity too! It’s good karma.

If you would like to talk about the creative incentives available please contact us

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