Client research

Interpret the brief – client, audience, requirements, purpose​

Explore the work of practitioners related to the theme​

Explore the potential of a variety of media in relation to your outcomes​

Make observations and records of the skills you explore and develop​

Use of research to inform development, outcomes and presentation to improve and refine work and ideas​



The given Brief:

Client​:

BBC

Context​:

BBC Three and BBC England are collaborating for the first time to launch Northern Voices, the Factual Development Scheme for the North of England. The new partnership is inviting independent production companies from the local area to submit ideas that reflect the life experiences of 16-24 year-olds in the region with the promise of a commission at the end of the process. The documentary area is relating to the theme of ‘Culture in the Digital Age’, capturing the culture of young people, and how onsets of digital technology have impacted upon this.​

Requirements​:

The responses are to be in the form of a short documentary film​

Audience​:

The primary target audience is for young people from the ages of 16-24. The aim is to engage young people and to encourage them to think about the impact of the digital age on modern society.​



The Client:

BBC :

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is the national broadcaster of the United Kingdom. Headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, it is the world's oldest national broadcaster, and the largest broadcaster in the world by number of employees, employing over 22,000 people. The BBC works  and operates under its agreement with the secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport. All of the BBC's income is funded by the TV license which is charged to all British households, companies, and organisations that use a TV or radio. The fee is set by the Government. However it must be  agreed by Parliament and is used to fund the BBC's radio, TV, and online services. The BBC has been classed as the auntie to the UK since the second world war, where they helped spread the news and provide strong propaganda. 

BBC Three:

As stated on Wikipedia, BBC three is a free-to-air television channel. This means that the audience doesn't have to pay a TV license to watch the channel. This does however mean that they will have to watch advertisements in between and during a program. First launched in 2003, the channel targets a wide audience of 16-34 year old's. The channel covers many different genres such as animation, comedy, current affairs, and drama series. Due to the wide amount of content, the channel has a wide audience with a lot of diversity in its viewers. Although the channel should theoretically have a high amount of viewers it was recently removed. 

As explained in this report, "Younger age groups continued to watch less broadcast TV in 2020. People aged 16 to 24, for example, only spent an hour and 17 minutes watching broadcast content – down four minutes from 2019". Bearing in mind this isn't just for BBC three, this is for the whole of TV.  Most young people these days are constantly watching online and using streaming platforms. The only time young people seem to be using TV is for sport and drama. "The most-watched program so far this year is the Euro 2020 final between England and Italy." Although TV is on a decline for this age range, many still watch TV. However, because of lockdown "TV and online video have proved an important antidote to lockdown life, with people spending a third of their waking hours last year glued to screens for news and entertainment." 

Due to the low numbers and budget cuts, the BBC were forced to terminate the channel in 2016. However, closing the channel seemed to have the opposite effect. From 2016 - 2019 viewing of BBC three programs, shown online or other BBC channels is down by a massive 72 percent. The channel itself, on Iplayer, has also had a decline of 89% on viewing minutes. It is said that most people like to watch the programs on the TV itself, despite the statistics. On 2 March 2021, the BBC confirmed that it planned to relaunch BBC Three's television channel in 2022 subject to regulatory approval, which was approved in November that year. 

Even though the low numbers indicate that the channel isn't being successful, the hopes are that by bringing back the channel, there will be a newer audience as to when it shut down. It's new boom of funding will also help to put on shows that the people love. Old shows, such as killing eve, might receive another boom in viewings online. This is because, while scrolling through the TV guide, they may see the show, causing them to click on it. After watching the audience may feel like they wish to watch more which will then lead them onto Iplayer or to watch online. BBC three will need to focus on both areas of distribution in order to have a successful outcome.

BBC England:

 As said on BBC, BBC England commissions a wide range of primarily factual programs. We are re-inventing the non-news television offer for our audience, delivering content that appeals to and reflects communities right across the country. 

BBC England are the people who commission the TV and online material. If a person or company has an idea for a show, BBC England are the people that authorize and give the funding needed for such production. Currently, and for the last 5 years, BBC England have been partnered with BBC Three in order to bring creative and inspiring opportunities for independent filmmakers. Overall, the division produces over 70% of the BBC's domestic television and radio output hours, for about 7% of the license fee. 

Currently they are looking for "north east indies" to create content. They are looking for people to pitch a single documentary that reflect the life of 16-24 year old's. This is so that they can reach the younger people and encourage them to create. This needed to be done as most creatives are from London and by giving more urban cities the chance to get their name out.

Northern voices main purpose:

Northern Voices is a scheme for engaging talent based in the North of England. Funding for creative talent is lacked in the northeast and the BBC wish to change that. The north east seem to look down on creative jobs as reported here
  • Figures for arts GCSEs in England have fell by 51,000 in 2018, taking the total fall in entries to almost 150,000 over five years.
  • Data published by qualifications regulator Ofqual show that since 2014, entries for arts subjects fell by 25.6%. Over the same period, total GCSE entries have grown by 3.4%.
On Top of that, the north east has been lacking in funding for itself and its culture. Therefore on the 23rd of February 2022 it was announced that areas in the northeast will receive funding. The government says, here, that the boost in financial support will ensure a better distribution of arts funding, help level up the country, and increase accessibility and opportunity in areas which have been culturally under-served in years gone by.

Again in 2021, the northeast receives funding for its creative industries. 

The recent boost of help in the northeast is now being seen by BBC and instead of giving straight financial support, they are giving people the chance to make small documentaries about their lives and be in for a chance for it to be broadcasted on the BBC Three. This might bring more chances to the indie filmmaker as there work is now being shown to the whole country.



Wikipedia Contributors (2019). BBC Three. [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_Three.

televisual.com (2021). Broadcast TV viewing down again for young people. [online] Televisual. Available at: https://www.televisual.com/news/broadcast-tv-viewing-down-again-for-young-people/.

‌PA, S.N. and Gibbons, B. (2020). BBC Three viewing figures have slumped since channel became digital-only. [online] WalesOnline. Available at: https://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/bbc-three-viewing-figures-slump-18898924 [Accessed 18 Apr. 2022].

www.bbc.co.uk. (n.d.). BBC England commissioning. [online] Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/commissioning/bbc-england#:~:text=Find%20out%20more- [Accessed 18 Apr. 2022].

Walker, J. (2019). Children miss out on careers as schools ‘downgrade’ arts subjects. [online] ChronicleLive. Available at: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/children-missing-out-careers-creative-16269612 [Accessed 18 Apr. 2022].

The Northern Echo. (n.d.). The 10 North East communities that will receive share of £75m cultural funding. [online] Available at: https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/19946144.north-east-communities-will-receive-share-75m-cultural-fund/ [Accessed 18 Apr. 2022].

Dickinson, K. (2021). £2.6m fund launched to help the North East’s creative and cultural industries. [online] ChronicleLive. Available at: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/26m-fund-launched-help-north-20824330 [Accessed 18 Apr. 2022].

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