Film and TV Briefing: Friday 2 February 2024
Welcome to this week’s round-up of news, commentary and industry announcements that you may have missed from the past week.
If you are looking for advice in relation to any of the issues mentioned, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
In the news
Channel 4 announces plans to cut 200 jobs (BBC)
Christopher Nolan feels 'responsibility' to continue working on ‘large-scale’ movies (Variety)
Kim Kardashian to executive produce new BBC Elizbeth Taylor documentary (BBC)
Paramount Global’s share prices jump 13% after reports of a potential takeover (Variety)
Amazon Prime Video launches Prime Video with ads - what does this mean for Freevee? (IndieWire)
Sky UK set to axe 1,000 jobs in move to focus more on streaming (Broadcast)
Lenny Henry will present Comic Relief for the last time this year after nearly 40 years (Deadline)
Launch of AI automation post-production tool Strada announced (Broadcast)
Sharp drop in spend on UK film and high-end TV in 2023 (Deadline)
Research finds almost 50% the UK’s Film & TV freelancers are struggling to make ends meet (Deadline)
Margot Robbie speaks out after missing out in the Oscars best actress category (The Guardian)
Hulu follows Disney+ and Netflix in banning password-sharing (The Hollywood Reporter)
Features and commentary
Dominic West discusses the ending of The Crown series and its impact on him (IndieWire)
Sundance 2024: sales and buzz so far (IndieWire)
Is Byron Allen’s Paramount bid a serious one? (The Hollywood Reporter)
Industry announcements
BBC Factual commissions three new docuseries on History and Science (Royal Television Society)
UK Screenwriters to receive £12 million from the Writers Digital Payments Scheme (Writers Guild)
Which jobs in Hollywood are most at risk from AI? (The Hollywood Reporter)
Bectu’s response to Channel 4’s announcement of 200 job cuts (Bectu)
Resources
Click here for the RTS Television Journalism Awards 2024 nominations (Royal Television Society)
Legal updates
The Hollywood Creative Alliance sues the Critics Choice Association for defamation (Variety)
Alec Baldwin pleads not guilty to involuntary manslaughter for shooting on the set of Rust (BBC)
