Lights, camera... investment!
The Crown Works studio site on the banks of the Wear features in Built Here, a new film by a North East filmmaker aimed at showcasing regional investment opportunities
A Sunderland-born filmmaker has created a new promotional film showcasing investment opportunities across the North East, using the site earmarked for the region’s first major TV and film studios as one of its central backdrops.
Carley Armstrong, who grew up in Hendon, was granted exclusive access to the Crown Works site in Sunderland to shoot Built Here, a cinematic production commissioned by North East Mayor Kim McGuinness ahead of next week’s UKREiiF property and infrastructure conference in Leeds.
Produced by Carley’s company, True Moon Pictures, the film highlights eight major investment opportunities across the region, including Crown Works, which recently secured £38m in public funding through the North East Combined Authority.
The site on the banks of the Wear is planned as a studio complex intended to support growth in film and television production in the region.
Carley, who left the North East to pursue a career in the screen industry before returning to the area, worked with a crew drawn from across the region to deliver the project.
She said: “The North East is brimming with potential, and I’m incredibly proud to play a part in telling that story to an audience who can help unlock it through further investment.
“As a champion for the region, and someone who was born and raised here, this project is deeply personal to me. The investment flowing into this site, just a short drive from where I grew up, is a powerful example of what can be achieved when there is a clear vision and collective ambition behind a sector, so to be given exclusive access to shoot there was really special.
“The North East is a place that knows how to deliver, and that’s the message I want to share; that investors can have real confidence in what we can achieve here.”
The film focuses on a range of sectors including offshore wind and energy transition, advanced manufacturing, life sciences, digital technology and the creative industries.
It will premiere during UKREiiF, which takes place in Leeds from May 19-21 and brings together investors, developers and public sector leaders from across the UK.
Representatives from all seven North East local authorities will attend the event alongside a regional business delegation promoting investment opportunities across the area.
Built Here will also be shared online and screened as part of Sunderland Film Festival.
Kim McGuinness said: “This film shows our huge ambition for the North East and even better that it’s been created by Sunderland-born filmmaker Carley, assisted by a fantastic local team.
“I want to see blockbusters filmed on the banks of the Wear that’s why we’ve invested £38m in Crown Works studios. This will create more opportunities for our local working class creatives both in front of and behind the camera to show what we’ve always known - our region is packed with talent.”
UKREiiF organisers say more than 16,000 delegates are expected to attend the three-day event, including more than 4,000 investors and developers.