20/11/2002 - Despite a strong last 2 years, the film industry is just “too volatile” so The Mil is refocusing on its core activity, advertising

One of the UK’s most important visual effects companies, The Mil, winner last year of an Oscar for its work on Gladiator, has put an abrupt end to its feature film activities to refocus on advertising. The announcement made today by Robin Shenfield, CEO of The Mill, came as a surprise, as the company in which filmmakers Tony and Ridley Scott are shareholders had a very busy 2001/2002; working on major blockbusters such as the new Bond film Die Another Day, the two Harry Potter films, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, Hannibal, Cats & Dogs, Chocolat, Knight’s Tale and Black Hawk Down.
Although acknowledging the creative and commercial success of Mill Film, the film division set up in 1997 to service the entertainment community as well as the advertising industry, Robin Shenfield explained he didn’t want to take any more risks in a particularly “volatile” industry.
“Film is a volatile business that requires both scale and continued investment,” he said. “It is hugely dependent on USA studios bringing work to the UK to take advantage of tax breaks. So we have decided to focus our energies and future investment on our core business, advertising.”
Since its creation in 1990, The Mill has indeed carved itself a unique position and reputation in the advertising world, creating award winning visual effects for brands such as Guinness, Levi’s, Mercedes, BMW and Nike. The end of the company’s feature film involvement is certainly a major setback for the UK film industry in general, and the post-production community in particular, but it underscores the general slump in film production in the UK with nearly 40 % fewer British films made last year, and inward investment falling by as much as 57% in 2001.

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