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Freelancers in the UK film industry could end up jobless if Donald Trump applies a 100% tariff to non-US movies, a producer has warned.
The US president announced on Sunday that he has authorised government departments to impose the tariff “on any and all movies coming into our country that are produced in foreign lands”.
Kirsty Bell, chief executive of production company Goldfinch, told the PA news agency: “He is right to address the fact that there’s a decline in the entertainment sector, which we’re seeing across the whole of the Western world.
“The issue isn’t that foreign films are taking precedence over domestic films, it’s that, firstly, films are cheaper to make overseas, because of lack of tax credits in certain places… the unions, the lower cost of labour, and buying budgets have been drastically reduced over two years, all driven by the change in viewing habits.
“People aren’t going to the cinema as much and decline in subscription services and rise of social media platforms and content creators… the industry is entirely changed.”
She added: “The answer is not tariffs if he’s trying to kick-start the industry in Hollywood. It’s developing an ecosystem for film-making that is entirely different to what has been before. There’s seismic changes in how the entertainment industry is structured needing to happen.”
Ms Bell questioned how the tariff would work and said blockbusters like Barbie, which was distributed by US film studio Warner Bros Pictures, “was actually shot virtually entirely in the UK”.
“If those US films don’t get partly produced or produced in the UK, freelancers are going to be jobless. I’m telling you now, they really are going to be jobless,” she said.
Philippa Childs, head of the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Communications and Theatre Union (Bectu), said the UK industry is “only just recovering” from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, when many productions were delayed or cancelled.
“The UK is a world leader in film and TV production, employing thousands of talented workers, and this is a key growth sector in the Government’s industrial strategy,” she said.
“These tariffs, coming after Covid and the recent slowdown, could deal a knock-out blow to an industry that is only just recovering and will be really worrying news for tens of thousands of skilled freelancers who make films in the UK.
“The Government must move swiftly to defend this vital sector, and support the freelancers who power it, as a matter of essential national economic interest.”
Culture, Media and Sport (CMS) Committee chairwoman Dame Caroline Dinenage said members warned “against complacency on our status as the Hollywood of Europe” in their report on British film and high-end TV, published last month.
“President Trump’s announcement has made that warning all too real,” she added.
“Making it more difficult to make films in the UK is not in the interests of American businesses. Their investment in facilities and talent in the UK, based on US-owned IP (intellectual property), is showing fantastic returns on both sides of the Atlantic. Ministers must urgently prioritise this as part of the trade negotiations currently under way.
“At the same time, the Government’s forthcoming Creative Industries Sector Plan needs to meet the challenge we set down of incentivising inward investment while also growing our domestic sector so British film and high-end TV can thrive.”
The committee’s report said the UK’s film and high-end television industry is “dominated” by inward investment from US studios and that this “brings significant economic and social benefits to the UK”.
Mr Trump’s latest announcement is part of an ongoing trade war after he placed tariffs of up to 145% on Chinese goods.
Tariffs are taxes charged on goods imported from other countries. It is not clear how a tariff on international productions could be implemented.
Many films are shot across numerous countries, including the US and UK.
US film and television production has been hampered in recent years, with setbacks from the Covid pandemic, the Hollywood guild strikes of 2023 and the recent wildfires in the Los Angeles area.
The UK film industry has also faced setbacks from the pandemic and the US strikes.
Last year, the Government introduced the Independent Film Tax Credit, which allows productions costing up to £15 million to benefit from an increased tax relief of 53%.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said it would help to “sustain a world-leading industry here in the UK”.
English (US) ·