Written by on Sep 22, 2015. Posted in On Location

Liverpool approves plan for new film studio

Authorities in Liverpool have approved plans to spend GBP 25 million converting the city’s former Littlewoods Building into new TV and film studios. The aim is to attract more movies to the city, as well as high-end television dramas like Peaky Blinders, which shot scenes locally.

Production in Liverpool has increased 20% this year on 2014, according to the Liverpool Film Office. New studio space could help the city draw an additional GBP 20 million in production spending each year.

“Production is thriving in Liverpool, but it’s not just about our iconic locations,” said Lynn Saunders, head of the Liverpool Film Office, in comments to Prolific North.

“Production companies also need facilities and studio space and that’s what we’ve had to turn down.”

“We have no studios available or any large empty spaces to build a set. These places don’t exist here at the moment. It was galling to turn that business away.

“Our studios are in a great location. They’re five minutes from the city centre, near hotels and near the M62, so it’s close for crew to get anywhere in the North. But also we work together. With Screen Yorkshire, they knew they couldn’t provide all the locations for ’71 or Peaky Blinders (above), so they shot some scenes in Liverpool.”

The new studio is planned to double as a regional digital and creative hub, with local production driven in part by the UK’s generous filming incentives for movies and high-end TV.

Large-scale studio space is scarce in the UK outside London, but adapted facilities are starting to appear in existing industrial buildings, often driven by the needs of specific productions. Screen Yorkshire recently launched Yorkshire Studios, which is being adapted from a former RAF base.