The production industry in Sunderland has never been a more exciting place to be than it is right now. The city and its surrounding areas are almost unrecognisable as new buildings, studios and creative spaces attract more interest every day.
One of the success stories is Schwartz Patrick Media who have been based there since 2019 and have ambitions of breaking into international markets with their innovative mix of broadcast and branded content production.
Ben Schwartz, one of the company’s founders, has worked hard to make his dream of running a production company a reality and has grown the organisation sustainably since its inception. He’s now able to look ahead to achieving their goals thanks to the work that they have done with Creative UK:
“It was a side hustle at the very beginning but throughout the pandemic that changed and we took it to a full time level. In 2024 we finally took the plunge and produced our first in-house production, which is a travel documentary featuring the Hidden Gems of the North East. When you’re doing your first in-house production, it’s super intimidating. There’s no other way you can describe it.”
The original film is being fully created by the team at Schwartz Patrick with a view to being sold to European buyers as an acquisition. It’s an ambitious plan for a small company but Schwartz feels in a much better place now to ensure that it will be a successful enterprise.
“Originally, we wanted to film our documentary in 2023, but then we ended up having this really washed out summer which was a blessing in disguise. It just gave us an additional three-quarters of a year to get the right people on board, but also by that time there was a lot more opportunities on a funding scale and a support scale.
“We became aware of the Create Growth Programme in the meantime which for us as a business was incredible for development and understanding what we can utilise and how we can go about certain things.
“I wish that I’d been on the Create Growth Programme much sooner because I think as a business we’d probably be much further than we are now.”
Prior to beginning their journey with Creative UK, Schwartz Patrick faced numerous challenges that are familiar for so many creative companies. They had reached a certain level in their field but needed guidance and insight as to how best to navigate the next stage of their development. Schwartz explained that the Create Growth Programme gave them the tools to understand how they could take their next steps:
“I don’t come from a background where any of my family have been business owners. That naturally comes with knowledge gaps.
“We had a lot of questions that were business and investment related. What we experienced on the programme was a really great journey to fill those knowledge gaps, to make some really great network connections and to take what we learned and really apply it on the business.
“Being on the course just gives you an opportunity to figure out what path your business might have to take if all you know is I’m ‘here’ right now and I want to go to ‘there’ but I don’t entirely know what the journey’s going to look like in between.
“It’s given us the reassurance and the confidence we needed to go into the investment conversations that we are having now.”
Schwartz Patrick are the kind of company that will walk their own path in the creative industry. They are focused on finding new and innovative ways to create content that they’re passionate about. Schwartz revealed that the understanding they have gained as a result of the Create Growth Programme has led to their decision to explore grant applications to support their in-house production.
“We have applied for a few smaller pots of funding and sometimes those smaller pots make a really big difference. They’ve had a huge impact on how we were able to operate through our production of Hidden Gems of The North East.
“It’s that confidence that you need to have when you’re putting together funding applications where sometimes you can be thrown off by some of the criteria. But just being able to go into that conversation, understand the application requirements much better and then also have access to people through Creative UK that you can ask questions about it so you can put together a really successful funding application has been a great experience.”
Not only has the Programme helped Schwartz Patrick feel more confident about applying for funding to support their international ambitions though, it has also broadened their horizons domestically with key connections made through the Create Growth Programme.
“As part of the course we had a big showcase and it was during that showcase that I met somebody who was working in a mentoring capacity and he introduced us to one of the BBC commissioners. We wouldn’t have had that otherwise. So, without the Create Growth cohort and the access to mentors with those existing networks, we wouldn’t have been in that position where that door was now open.”
Being part of the Create Growth Programme has broadened the company’s horizons and Schwartz says that he is now able to understand more, not only about running and developing his business, but also about tailoring their ideas to what commissioners are looking for.
“You need those broadcaster contacts in order to make sure that as a company you find out whether what you are developing sits with their audience and is something that they’re keen on putting on television."
“It’s given us the reassurance and the confidence we needed to go into the investment conversations that we are having now.”