BFI NETWORK Talent Executive (part-time)

Salary: £36,057-£40,962 per annum pro-rata

The ICO is recruiting for a BFI NETWORK Talent Executive (part-time) to work three days a week over the next 11 months on our talent activities in the Film Hub South East region.

The Independent Cinema Office (ICO) is the national organisation for the support and development of the independent cinema exhibition sector in the UK. We offer film programming services to cinemas, bring films into distribution and are the main provider of events, training and advice for the independent cinema sector. We work with the main funding bodies in film exhibition, are a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity.

Our film programming clients include cinemas as diverse as the Watershed in Bristol, Malvern Theatres in Worcestershire and Catford Mews in South East London. In 2020-1 we delivered a national film tour, Second Sight, exploring the legacy of the UK’s Black Film Workshop Movement with a series of award-winning artists’ commissions. We also deliver Screening Days, a national and regional showcase for cultural cinema for film societies, community cinemas and cinemas. We offer a portfolio of national and internationally renowned training programmes for exhibitors.

Since 2018, the Independent Cinema Office has also been the lead organisation for Film Hub South East, part of the BFI’s Film Audience Network.

BFI NETWORK and the BFI Film Audience Network

Made possible through National Lottery funding, BFI NETWORK exists to discover and support talented writers, directors and producers at the start of their careers. BFI NETWORK collaborates with film organisations and leading cultural venues across the UK to provide funding for short films, support for the development of first features, as well as a range of professional and creative development programmes.

BFI NETWORK Talent Executives are based in regional Film Hubs as part of the BFI Film Audience Network (FAN) at some of England’s foremost independent cinemas, arts venues and industry bodies.

In Film Hub South East our BFI NETWORK Talent Executive discovers, supports, develops and champions new and emerging filmmakers across the region in the counties of Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Kent, Norfolk, Oxfordshire, Suffolk, Surrey and Sussex.

The role

We are looking for a new Talent Executive to join our existing team to work three days a week over the next 11 months on our talent activities in the South East region.

Primarily, you will be assessing applications to the BFI NETWORK’s Short Film Fund and working with partners to support and develop creative talent in the region. You need to have had good experience of short film production, and be fully conversant with budgets, legal issues and the practicalities of production.

You need to be passionate about new talent, supportive and good at outreach. You need to be a self-starter with great administration skills and an understanding of the needs of emerging talent. You might have produced your own films or worked in production across film or television. You might also work as an independent producer or other production professional in your own right.

You must be willing to work hard and be able to juggle competing workloads, and work to deadlines. (Please note we need someone who can start in May 2022 for this role).

In return, we can offer responsibility, opportunities for training and development and the chance to work with a friendly, creative team at the forefront of independent cinema exhibition and talent development in the UK. We provide access to an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) – a confidential information and counselling service for employees and to Occupational Health services; a dedicated HR consultant for staff support; access to a SMARTPensions scheme; annual train ticket loans; flexible working practices; flexibility around childcare hours/needs; invites to events and festivals, and other benefits.

Our offices are in London and in line with our new hybrid working policy we would expect you to come into the office one day a week, but otherwise you can work from home (and can work from the office more days if you prefer). It would be an advantage if you are familiar with the South East region and some of the organisations that support talent located there, but is not essential.

The post would ideally be delivered three days a week, working eight hour days (including one hour for lunch) but we are open to it being delivered across a greater number of days.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

The ICO is an equal opportunity employer. We believe that a diverse workforce leads to an organisation that is more creative, innovative and gets better results. We want our workforce to represent the diversity of the people and communities in the UK and we want to see these reflected on our screens. We also want our workforce to be one where different experiences, expertise and perspectives are valued and where everyone is encouraged to grow and develop.

We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian, ethnically diverse, and disabled candidates as they are underrepresented within the ICO.

Along with our application form, we also request you complete our Equality and Diversity monitoring information to help us monitor our efforts towards achieving an inclusive and diverse workforce.

This data is not included in the information sent to the recruitment panel and will be anonymised within the scope of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

How to apply

Please download our recruitment pack:

Recruitment pack

Please read the job description and complete the application form. Return your completed application form to info@independentcinemaoffice.org.uk by 10am on Tuesday 19 April 2022. We will be interviewing on 25 and/or 28 April.

Please note that we do not accept CVs – all candidates should apply via the application form.

If you would need these documents in large print versions or a different format, please let us know by emailing the info address above and we can supply.

How our recruitment process works

We know sometimes the process of applying for a job can feel like sending applications into a black hole and can be unnerving when you don’t know what will happen. We’ve put together a document which explains a bit more about our recruitment process, what will happen during each stage of the process and what we’d like from you. This document is included in our recruitment pack (link above).

The closing date for this position is 19/04/2022 at 10:00