Wales’ film and television industry is now worth £100m FROM A DARK

“I

KNEW it was the country with the cool dragon on the flag.”

That was pretty much all Lin-Manuel Miranda knew about Wales before he and his family decamped to Cardiff in the summer of 2018.

Since then, it is safe to say, the American composer, singer, actor, playwright and producer now knows a lot more about Cymru.

Much has changed in the 18 months since my previous visit to Wolf Studios Wales. For a start the parking is much, much more difficult.

Back then A Discovery of Witches was putting the finishing touches to the first series at the Cardiff Bay studios. Such has been the success of the series, which was shown on Sky One in the UK, a second and third series were quickly approved.

However, these series have been moved to Pinewood Wales, along with the Lena Dunham-directed TV series Industry, as Wolf Studios has been dedicated to the development of the ambitious, £50m adaption of His Dark Materials.

While A Discovery of Witches was grand in its production, the new fantasy series based on the Phillip Pullman books is epic.

The first episode, as you can see tonight on BBC One, is spell-binding and comes with a heavyweight cast.

James McAvoy, a bona-fide film star, his breakout role on TV in the gritty British series Shameless, marks a return to the small screen.

Ruth Wilson is another household name on both sides of the Atlantic following Luther and Mrs Wilson in the UK and The Affair in the US.

And it was on my previous visit 18 months ago that Bad Wolf co-founder and the show’s producer Jane Tranter found out Lin-Manuel Miranda was joining the cast.

At the time it was information she couldn’t or wouldn’t share, yet there was a fervour of excitement when she told the people in the room that they had signed the person they were hoping for.

The lead role is played by 14-yearold Dafne Keen, who rose to fame in the Wolverine film Logan.

This adaption is big. It has the potential to be Game of Thrones big. It is taking the production company Bad Wolf, and Wales as a filming location, up another level. And it is all part of a long-term plan.

In early 2018 on the visit to the set of the first series of A Discovery of Witches, Ms Tranter said she believed they were at “step four” of Wales’ evolution as a filming destination. She confirms they are now at stage five, although jokes it feels more like 45.

The other productions include the second series of A Discovery of Witches, Industry, a show being filmed in London called I Hate Suzie, and a production that has just been green-lit called Tenacity. Ms Tranter believes the six-part submarine drama for ITV will be shot in Wales.

The constant filming is something she has been striving for. Ms Tranter was keen to avoid Wales becoming a place where production companies drop in, shoot, and then leave.

While Wolf Studios was used for the first season of A Discovery of Witches, there was always an eye fixed on it being used for His Dark Materials. The series took over the site after A Discovery of Witches wrapped early last year.

The back lot, which had once housed the cast trailers from A Discovery of Witches, is now the sunscorched town of Cittàgazze. Somewhat hard to imagine on a damp autumnal morning, but then that will be rectified by the magic of CGI. Inside the studio the frozen, arctic lands of Svalbard were created.

“With Wolf [Studios] we found the building and then we went to the Welsh Government and said this is how we would turn what had recently been a factory into a series of sound stages,” says Ms Tranter. “It is also part of a necessary commitment to Wales, which is to have a place where we could open the doors to schoolchildren and also give consistent work across the whole year to build out a creative community.”

This is where Screen Alliance Wales comes in. The not-for-profit organisation is run by the industry, for the industry, and its home is in Wolf Studios.

Screen Alliance Wales promotes the wide range of skills, services and facilities that are on offer in Wales. It also provides training and experience for the next generation, and encourages young people to see the work of the film and TV industry in Wales for themselves.

There is a classroom in the studio with an on-site teacher to provide lessons for visiting pupils. When filming, cast members including Lin-Manuel Miranda would often drop into the classroom to meet the children and share their experiences.

Allison Dowzell, managing director at Screen Alliance Wales, said: “Screen Alliance Wales is fast becoming the industry standard in promoting the complete supply chain for the film and TV industry in Wales. Our online portal offers a range of news, events and other information on breaking into this exciting industry. It also offers a crew directory for professional crews and facilities.”

Something Screen Alliance and others in the creative industry are keen to stress is that the jobs are not limited to actors, directors and writers – there is a multitude of opportunities for employment.

Creative Cardiff – a city-wide network set up and run by Cardiff University and partners to try to grow and connect creative people and organisations in a bid to make the Welsh capital the most creative place it can be – has almost 3,000 members.

The aim of the network is to amplify job opportunities, help make connections between creatives through a series of events and encourage innovation.

A noticeable change from the previous visit to Wolf Studios was a new neighbour and an examplee of a business that has seen rapid growth rowth in the past few years.

The history and growth h of the set construction commpany 4Wood matches the he TV industry in Wales. The e company, which now has s its headquarters next door r to the studios, was started d in the same year Doctor r

Who came to Wales.

Scott Fisher was working ng mainly as a chargehand and nd then as construction manager an ager on the revival of the sci-fi se series. eries.

“His passion for the industry nd dustry was born, and it was soon oon afterwards that 4Wood TV and Film was formed,” ed,” explains his wife and busisiness co-founder Lynsey ey

Fisher.

4Wood now employs 20 full-time staff, including ng office staff, construction on managers and apprentices, ces, and it is in the process ss of increasing the team by a further

15. It will also work with, at ata times, up to 150 local sub-contractors on ntractors consisting of scenic carpenters, enters, scenic artists, steel fabricators, ators, model makers and sculptors. ors.

Ms Fisher says that hat

4Wood is only just getting ng started.

“We are passionate te about the future of the TV V and film industry in Wales, es, and as such, 4Wood are committed to ongoing trainaining requirements and encourouraging new talent into this exciting industry,” she said.

“We look forward to many more productions coming to Wales ales over the coming years to give us all the opportunity to create yet more world-class sets.”

A company that is new to Wales, but fast making an impression on the local creative community, is Painting Practice.

The company, which has taken space inside Wolf Studios, is looking at moving lock, stock and barrel from Twickenham. It means the company would have its HQ in Cardiff with smaller offices in London and Madrid.

Painting Practice, which is currently helping to put the finishing touches to the second series of His Dark Materials, has won numerous awards for its work on the science-fiction/fantasy – and frankly bizarre – TV series Black Mirror.

The firm was founded by Joel Collins and Daniel May, and works with motion graphics, animation, VFX, production design, concept art and prop design. The company wasted little time in settling into life in Wales and quickly formed a very strong link with the University of South Wales.