Casting directors have called on the TV and film industry in the UK to “safeguard the future of UK theatre and theatre makers”.
The Casting Directors’ Guild asked in a statement for the “more financially robust sectors of the arts” to lend a hand to the sectors that are struggling due to the pandemic, adding that “the talent fostered in theatres throughout Great Britain and Ireland is envied around the world and is endlessly drawn on by screen media.
“We believe that television and film production companies must confront a stark reality: that, without your help, the talent pool which we all rely on faces its greatest existential threat in a generation.”
The CDG said that TV and film “reap the benefits” of theatre innovation in the UK, citing such artists as Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Sam Mendes, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Abi Morgan, who made their names as theatremakers before their work appeared on screen.
The success of recent television and film productions has further demonstrated this, with playwrights Alice Birch adapting Normal People for the BBC, and James Graham’s play Quiz coming to ITV, both breaking records.
The statement also noted that without Edinburgh Fringe, which has been cancelled for this year, “leading actors in studio films would never have been discovered without the bold experimentation of affiliate theatres”, while local theatres are crucial for nurturing celebrated screenwriters with new writing schemes.
“It is vital that we, as an industry, acknowledge the grim ramifications of abandoning our theatre colleagues as they face the fallout from COVID-19."
Theatres across the UK have been closed since March 16, with many expressing the financial difficulty that this has imposed. Smaller theatres have lost up to 95 per cent of their income, while larger venues are also at risk due to huge running costs.
