North East Screen

What North East Screen does

North East Screen is the publicly funded, non-profit screen industries development agency for North East England, structured as a company limited by guarantee (company number 04357249) and operating as the delivery body of the North East Screen Industries Partnership (NESIP). Its core function is to act as a single front door for film and television productions seeking to film in the region, consolidating access to local authorities, crew, locations, and facilities. The organization provides a portfolio of interconnected services: the Film Office (free production support), the North East Production Fund (grant investment into high-end television drama and commercial features, £2.37m deployed across productions including Jackdaw, Smoggie Queens, and The Feud), the Crew Academy (workforce development with subsidised trainee rates), and Connected Campus (university and FE partnerships).

North East Screen is funded primarily through grants from the North East Combined Authority and Tees Valley Combined Authority via NESIP (an £11.4m five-year envelope beginning in 2022), augmented by project-specific grants from the BFI, UK Government, Tees Valley Investment Zone, and the BBC. A strategic Memorandum of Understanding with the BBC commits at least £40m in network TV commissioning to the region by end of 2027. The organization's underlying technology stack is administrative rather than platform-based: a Crew Database for matching productions with talent, a Film Office coordination workflow, plus standard corporate and website infrastructure; no proprietary software product or developer-facing API is exposed. The 11-50 staff are based across two offices in Hartlepool (headquarters) and Sunderland.

The business model is non-commercial by design: all agency services are free to eligible recipients and the organization generates no pricing-based revenue. Customer segments span independent production companies (e.g., Lonesome Pine Productions, Hera Pictures, Twentysix03), major studios (Hat Trick, Big Talk Studios, Fulwell 73, FilmNation, Cottonwood Media, Quay Street Productions, The Mediapro Studio), incoming film crews, regional independent producers, and digital content creators participating in the BBC-partnered Digital Accelerator. Economic outcomes claimed by the organization include a 131% surge in regional production spend and £65m GVA over three years (2022-2025), 1,046 FTE jobs created, a £7 return on every £1 invested via the Production Fund, and a 90% increase in filming days with productions staying longer in the region.

Name

North East Screen

Legal name

North East Screen

Website

https://northeastscreen.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

North East Screen is a publicly funded, non-profit screen industries development agency for North East England that operates a Film Office, a production investment fund, a Crew Academy, and skills programmes to attract film and TV productions to the region. It is funded primarily by combined authorities and the BBC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Hartlepool

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government and Public Sector Funding: North East Screen receives funding from public sector bodies including the North East Screen Industries Partnership (NESIP), which is jointly funded by the North East Combined Authority and Tees Valley Combined Authority. NESIP invested £11.4m over five years to deliver a Screen Industries Development Programme. The organization also receives funding from the UK Government, Tees Valley Investment Zone, and BFI National Lottery funding through Screen Alliance North.
2. BBC Partnership and Commissioning: Strategic partnership with the BBC through a Memorandum of Understanding, with at least £40 million in network TV commissioning committed by end of 2027. The BBC partnership includes the Digital Accelerator program with £600,000 joint investment and the North East Production Fund supported productions.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

North East Screen is the screen industries development agency for North East England, providing free services that connect film and TV productions with crew, locations, and local authorities through its Film Office. It invests public funds into productions via the North East Production Fund, develops workforce skills through the Crew Academy and Connected Campus programmes, and runs the BBC-partnered Digital Accelerator to support digital-first content makers. All services are provided free of charge to eligible recipients as the organisation is publicly funded through combined authorities and project-specific grants.

Product overview

North East Screen is the screen industries development agency for North East England, offering a portfolio of interconnected services designed to support the growth of a world-class, sustainable production sector. Its core offerings include the Film Office (a free production service connecting productions with crew, locations, and facilities), the North East Production Fund (an investment vehicle for HETV drama and feature films), the Crew Academy (skills and training for new entrants), and the Digital Accelerator (a BBC-partnered digital content development programme). These are supported by Development Initiatives (including Future North East and writer/director support), the Going Places bursary (for travel and training outside the region), and Connected Campus (linking universities with industry). The North East Screen Industries Partnership (NESIP) and Screen Alliance North represent key strategic partnerships that channel funding and coordinate regional development across North East England.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Film Office

Quantifiable outcome

• £7 return on every £1 invested in North East Production Fund projects
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• BBCcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2021Strategic partnership through Memorandum of Understanding with BBC committing at least £40 million in network TV commissioning by end of 2027. Includes Digital Accelerator program (£600,000 joint investment), talent development initiatives, and BBC commissioning introductions for North East production companies.
• Screen Alliance North (BFI Skills Cluster)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership of Liverpool Film Office, North East Screen, Screen Manchester, and Screen Yorkshire. Delivers BFI National Lottery-funded skills and training programs across the North of England. Received £2.3m funding secured for another 3 years.
• PactcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Content Without Borders conference - a two-day event bringing UK independent producers together with international commissioners and buyers. Generated £50m+ in reported potential business in 2025.
• Visit Northumberland LVEPminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal Destination Management Organization partnering with North East Screen for supply chain events to connect Northumberland businesses with the growing screen sector.
• GeoPuraminorGTM or Marketing PartnerClean energy solutions provider sponsoring Content Without Borders 2025 and supply chain events, offering zero-emission hydrogen power units for productions.
• AudioNetworkminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAudio company supporting Content Without Borders 2025 event.
• ReelTimeMediaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for job sharing and flexible working sessions across the North screen agencies, focusing on how job sharing can work within the screen industry.
• BBC and North East ScreencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDigital Accelerator: £600,000 joint investment from BBC, North East Screen Industries Partnership, North East Combined Authority, and Tees Valley Combined Authority. Nine-month program supporting up to four production companies to create digital-first content for 16-24 year olds.

Scale indicators17 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Screen Scotland: National screen agency for Scotland providing film office, production funding, skills development, and studio infrastructure. Operates a comparable film office + fund + skills model but at national (rather than regional) scope and competes with North East Screen for the same HETV and feature productions landing in the UK.
• Northern Ireland Screen: National screen agency for Northern Ireland offering film commission services, production funding, skills development, and studio infrastructure (including Belfast Harbour Studios). Operates an analogous film office + production fund + skills academy model and competes for the same high-end productions.
• Ffilm Cymru Wales: Welsh Government's development agency for film and television, providing production funding, location services, and skills programmes. Comparable film office + fund structure to North East Screen, and a key competitor for UK and US productions choosing between UK regional incentives.

Broad incumbents

• Film London: London's screen industries agency, providing film office services, production support, skills programmes and major infrastructure initiatives. Broader incumbent operating at significantly larger scale in a more mature market; comparable function to North East Screen but in the UK's largest production hub.
• Creative UK: UK-wide membership and policy body for the creative industries, providing advocacy, investment support, and ecosystem development. Broader incumbent covering all creative sectors (not just screen) and a comparable voice in regional creative industry development strategy alongside agencies like North East Screen.
• British Film Institute (BFI): Lead body for film in the UK and the primary Lottery funder of regional screen agencies, including the Screen Alliance North cluster of which North East Screen is a partner. Provides the funding framework and skills policy that North East Screen operates within, but operates at a national rather than regional remit.

Direct peers

• Liverpool Film Office: Liverpool City Region's screen agency delivering film office, crew database, and production liaison services. Direct peer to North East Screen, sharing the BFI Skills Cluster partnership through Screen Alliance North and operating with comparable scale and remit in a neighbouring northern region.
• Screen Yorkshire: UK regional screen industry development agency covering Yorkshire & Humber, delivering film office services, production funding (Yorkshire Content Fund), skills programmes, and infrastructure investment. Direct structural peer to North East Screen operating an analogous film office + production fund + skills academy model in an adjacent region, and a co-partner within Screen Alliance North.
• Screen Manchester: Greater Manchester's film and screen agency, providing film office services, production liaison, and crew/location support. Direct functional peer to North East Screen's Film Office with overlapping inbound production attraction remit, and one of the closest geographic comparables for North West England.

Others

• Pact: UK trade association for independent production companies, partnering with North East Screen on the Content Without Borders conference and other industry events. An ecosystem participant rather than a direct competitor; useful as a comparable for industry-association engagement with regional screen development agencies.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nescreen_
• YouTubevimeo.com/northeastscreen
• Facebookfacebook.com/northeastscreen
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/northeastscreen
• Instagraminstagram.com/northeastscreen

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about North East Screen