Feature films are the holy grail for a lot of production companies. They’re the pinnacle of the industry for many but can take years or even decades to even get to the starting blocks. It’s a hugely competitive part of the industry with rubicks-cube-like funding models that need solid business foundations to backstop them.
It’s been a journey already for Len Collin of Ballpoint Films from North Tyneside but the next steps for him come with confidence and belief as a result of his experiences working with Creative UK. They’ve seen him go from not even considering applying for the Create Growth Programme to securing investment to take his next feature film move a step closer to reality.
“I had half completed the form to do the Create Growth Programme and I thought ‘this isn’t for me’ but I got a call from someone at Creative UK and they told me ‘no, you’re exactly right for this!’. That’s the problem, so often, people stop themselves before they start and I’ve learned from this that if you want something, you’ve just got to go for it.”
The experience on the initial Create Growth Programme unlocked skills for Collin that he never knew he had and through work with his business mentor and the different bootcamps and sessions he took part in, he’s found a balance between innovation and commercial success that will help his company flourish.
“I’m a creative person, first and foremost, and not a business person. What doing the Create Growth Programme has done is, it’s turned me into a businessman. It’s been an experience that’s made me feel more confident in networking situations and in financial situations. As a result, I’ve now got a network of connections up here in the North East that I can rely on.”
Ballpoint have already been involved with one critically acclaimed feature film - Sanctuary - so they have a strong starting point to create more. Their next is in pre-production and, despite the challenges of making high end scripted drama, Collin’s experience with Creative UK has already made their ambitions more realistic by accessing the Shared Success Fund.
“The prime project we’ve got at the moment is a film called The Guinness Girl and that’s set to shoot in summer 2026. Until the project is made through, you’re always ‘in development’ and running a company is expensive.”
Collin explained that applying for the Fund meant that he had to get his administration, strategy and infrastructure right to be taken seriously: “in order to apply for the Shared Success Fund, you had to basically do your plan of action. It’s meant that we have very definite goals that we’ve set out. Knowing when we’re going to do our casting, knowing when we’re going to do our location scouting, all those waypoints we can hit with confidence.”
For the uninitiated, making a feature film takes talented people who bring a range of skills in different forms. For Collin, the Shared Success Fund has had a huge impact on their ambitions for making Ballpoint’s next film and beyond.
“We used the money from the Shared Success Fund to hire a casting director that has enabled us to attract talent to The Guinness Girl. It’s also enabled me to get my company’s finances and accounts in order by hiring a specialised tax representative. Once we get this project off the ground and hopefully it will do very well, we hope to move forward as a company that has a reputation for bringing quality scripts to the screen.”
Ballpoint are one of a number of production companies from the North East who have big ambitions for the region and, alongside feature films, hope to attract broadcast commissions. Collin feels that the creative community is poised to bring sustained success and that, with the right investment, like the Shared Success Fund, belief, and progressive collaborations the future is a bright one.
“Imagine a future where the North East is known for its creative industries and it becomes a new Hollywood. That would be amazing. The people here are extremely talented, easy to work with, there’s so much that we could achieve. A long running, returning series would be the place where you could train writers, directors, gaffers, directors of photography, but then it comes out to graphic designers, set designers, fashion. With the support of Creative UK, that could be our future.”
“I’m a creative person, first and foremost, and not a business person. What doing the Create Growth Programme has done is, it’s turned me into a businessman. It’s been an experience that’s made me feel more confident in networking situations and in financial situations. As a result, I’ve now got a network of connections up here in the North East that I can rely on.”
