Revenue and cinema attendances increased in 2008, figures show

The British film industry has bucked the trend during the economic downturn with a year of steady growth in revenue and attendances at the cinema, figures show.

In 2008 – the year of The Dark Knight, Mamma Mia! and Quantum of Solace – British films accounted for 15% of box office takings worldwide, banking $4.2bn (£2.6bn) – up nearly $1bn on the previous year.

Attendances also rose steadily, adding weight to research by the UK Film Council on past recessions that suggested going to the movies was generally unaffected by the economic climate.

The trend is expected to continue this year with the production of major UK/US productions, such as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One. In the first half of 2009, £535m was spent on film production in Britain, compared with £363m over the same period last year.

Nonetheless, only one in 20 purely domestic films made a profit last year, and there were a number of star-studded flops, including Three And Out, starring Mackenzie Crook, which took only £189,454 when it opened in April 2008.

According to David Steele, head of research and statistics at the UK Film Council, said: “The film industry is a hit-dependent industry, and there are very few hits. If you want to score goals you have to make many attempts; and the difference between hits and misses is vast.”

US/UK productions have a far higher profit rate of 27%, based on their box-office takings over the first two years of release. “Studio films have much larger budgets; and the hit rate goes up as the budget goes up when you can employ stars and tap into global marketing and distribution,” said Steele, who today launched the 2009 UK Film Council Statistical Yearbook..

The British film industry has in recent years been propped up considerably by franchises such as Harry Potter, and by blockbusters such as Mamma Mia!. The latter has become the biggest-selling DVD of all time.

The effect on the British film industry when the Harry Potter films come to an end is uncertain.

“I don’t think we can assume that others won’t come up with great ideas in the future,” said Steele. “The talent base in Britain is so rich and deep.”