Bristol Film Economy Up 55% to £46.6m

Source: Bristol Film Office

29 major productions were assisted by Bristol Film Office and The Bottle Yard Studios throughout the 2024-25 financial year (including three feature films and 26 High-End TV productions) with a total of 736 filming days supported in the studio and on location. The economic impact of this production activity is valued at an estimated £46,645,000, an increase of £16.6 million (55%) on the previous year. In total, 689 filming permits were processed by the Film Office in 2024–25, permitting filming to take place on council-owned streets, properties and green spaces.

The year also saw more of Bristol’s best-loved visitor destinations directly benefitting from income brought in by filming, after being connected to productions by the Bristol Film Office. Historic boatyard Underfall Yard - which has been fundraising since 2023 to complete recovery and reinstatement works following a devastating arson attack - and inner-city community hub St Werburghs City Farm, are two examples of local charities that hosted extensive filming last year.  

Councillor Tony Dyer, Leader of Bristol City Council, said: “Bristol’s film industry plays a significant role in the growing strength of our local and regional economy. The substantial growth in economic impact these latest figures demonstrate underlines just how important this sector is to our city, not just in terms of jobs but also exposure to a global audience. This impact, combined with that of other culture and creative sectors in the city, is driving an economic impact worth £892 million a year to Bristol and makes us a city that investors have increasing confidence in with an estimated £88 leveraged by arts organisations for every £1 invested.” 

Laura Aviles, Head of Film, Bristol City Council, says: “A 55% increase in the economic contribution generated by film and TV productions hosted by The Bottle Yard Studios and supported by Bristol Film Office, in just one year, is outstanding. Not only are we seeing the number of productions opting to film in Bristol remain strong, we’re also seeing the size and length of those shoots increase. Thanks to the outstanding service from The Bottle Yard team and the gold standard of logistical liaison provided by the Film Office on location, productions are spending more time prepping and filming bigger, more ambitious shoots here. This is leading to more employment for regional scripted freelancers and companies, and more local spend in the economy.  

“It’s so rewarding to also see more of Bristol’s charities and community groups benefit from valuable new income streams by hiring their unique spaces out as locations, which we hope will in turn lead to further screen tourism benefits in future. With new releases like Young Sherlock, The Seven Dials Mystery, The Dream Lands, Inheritance and The Forsytes on the horizon – as well as others still under wraps – it’s clear that our studio, locations, crew and companies are keeping Bristol at the top of its game, as one of the most successful regional cities for scripted filming in the UK today.”  

A total of 17 major productions were filmed at The Bottle Yard Studios throughout the year, eight of which had the biggest presence in the city by also filming on location with assistance from Bristol Film Office. These eight were: upcoming Sky Original thriller Inheritance starring Gugu Mbatha Raw and Jonny Lee Miller; upcoming Channel 5/PBS period drama The Forsytes starring Millie Gibson and Joshua Orpin; upcoming Netflix Agatha Christie thriller The Seven Dials Mystery starring Mia McKenna-Bruce, Helena Bonham Carter and Martin Freeman; upcoming BBC coming-of-age relationship drama The Dream Lands starring Pascale Kann and Anna Friel; upcoming feature film Bad Apples starring Saoirse Ronan; series two of BBC comedy thriller Am I Being Unreasonable written by and starring Daisy May Cooper; and series two of BBC comedy drama Boarders.

It was a particularly busy year for the Bristol Film Office, which assisted 19 major productions on location throughout the year. In addition to those listed above, titles included: Guy Ritchie’s upcoming Prime Video series Young Sherlock starring Hero Fiennes Tiffin and Colin Firth; upcoming BBC/Disney+ Doctor Who spin-off The War Between Land and Sea starring Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha Raw; upcoming second series of Channel 4 cyber thriller The Undeclared War starring Hannah Khalique-Brown and Simon Pegg; upcoming feature Mother’s Pride starring Martin Clunes (in cinemas 26th September 2025); upcoming feature film H is for Hawk starring Clare Foy and Brendan Gleeson; Paramount+ thriller The Crow Girl starring Eve Myles and Doug-ray Scott; and BBC Agatha Christie thriller Towards Zero starring Anjelica Huston.

Major productions filmed at The Bottle Yard Studios only (without city locations) included the upcoming BBC comedy Can You Keep a Secret? starring Dawn French and Mark Heap; Enid Blyton CBBC series Malory Towers and The Famous Five, CBeebies series Andy’s Global Adventures: Baby Animal Missions and upcoming Sky Kids series Jaime’s Treetop Tales.

How are the figures calculated?  

Figures are calculated using the Average Local Production Spend Rate Card launched by Creative England’s Filming in England team in 2023. The Rate Card is part of a Local Economic Impact Toolkit, designed to help local authorities in England more accurately calculate and report on the average local economic impact of location filming activity in their region. It analyses total production expenditure based on where it was spent and the classification of a local authority’s location.  

A significant number of resources are required to create a film or TV production. Every film crew that works in Bristol needs accommodation, food, transportation, security and other services. A single feature or high-end TV series can spend hundreds of thousands of pounds locally, boosting the revenue of local businesses including hotels, guesthouses, cafes and restaurants, taxi and car rental services and retail stores. Securing part or all of a shoot in Bristol results in varied levels of expenditure flowing into the local economy, with the range of spend depending on the type of project, what services and resources the project needs to access, and the budget range.  

The Rate Card takes all these different types of spend into consideration, including Screen-Production Specific (e.g. crew’s wages and specialist suppliers of local film/TV equipment and services) as well as other categories of Business Support, Construction, Digital Services, Fashion & Beauty, Hospitality & Catering and Local Labour. It provides a frame of reference to gauge the average amount of daily expenditure that can be expected from a specific type of production, depending on the designated classification of the location and the budget range into which the project falls. This is then applied to data of all productions supported by Bristol Film Office and Bottle Yard Studios, to calculate the overall estimated economic impact.  

Boosting screen tourism

As well as creating short-term opportunities for local crew and specialist companies and knock-on spending in wider business sectors, films and TV shows made in a city have been proven to have a positive, longer-term impact on tourism and the visitor economy. Iconic locations featured in popular productions become screen tourism attractions, drawing visitors from around the world. Rising numbers of Bristol venues, charities and businesses are working with the Bristol Film Office to be introduced to productions as potential filming locations. Being hired for filming helps venues, businesses and community spaces create valuable new revenue streams, and in the longer term can lead to increased footfall after a TV show or film’s release.  

Past examples include Aerospace Bristol (featured in Disney+ hit Rivals), St Werburghs Farm (featured in BBC/ Prime Video comedy thriller The Outlaws) and The Georgian House Museum (featured in ITVX period drama Sanditon).