We’ve started to notice a growing number of smaller production companies appearing across the UK. Is it filmmakers wanting to create their own work and build something around their voice, or is it simply that it’s easier than ever to set up and run a company? It could also reflect the reality that not everyone fits easily into traditional industry structures, particularly for people who work differently or think differently, where building your own setup becomes the more practical route. So on that note, we’re looking at a selection of newer production companies that have appeared and seeing what they’re actually doing, as well as some that have stayed small but been up and running from the 00's.

Bosena, referenced in Screen Daily, is developing a slate of feature projects, with activity emerging over the past few years through development rather than a large released catalogue.

Boudica Entertainment has produced films including Kat and the Band and Swung, and has been building a steady slate of projects since the late 2010s, working across a range of budgets but has recent growth due to being the recipient of the 2024 BBC small indie fund.

Quiddity Films, founded by Emily Morgan, has produced films including I Am Not a Witch, which premiered at Cannes and won a BAFTA, as well as The Settlers. Quiddity Films has been active since around 2010 and has grown through festival-led releases. This company's growth is also thanks to support from the BBC’s Small Indie Fund.

Genesius Pictures Genesius Pictures, founded around 2019, is behind Good Luck To You, Leo Grande and more recent projects including The Radleys, showing how a smaller company can scale quickly through a successful title.

Parkville Pictures Parkville Pictures, incorporated in 2007, is a BAFTA-nominated production company that has worked on projects including Polite Society and The Miseducation of Cameron Post, with a small team that has been scaling its output more recently.

Cinevision Studios Cinevision Studios appears as a smaller independent outfit working primarily in advertising and branded content, with activity emerging more recently through project-based work rather than a large film slate.

Gunpowder House Gunpowder House operates across both publishing and production, including work around author imprints and book-led projects, reflecting a crossover between written IP and screen content. Its activity appears to have emerged over the past year through these projects.

Hurricane Films Hurricane Films, founded in 2000 in Liverpool by Roy Boulter and Solon Papadopoulos, has produced films such as A Quiet Passion, A Prayer Before Dawn, and The Last Bus, operating with a strong regional identity and a focus on character-driven stories.

It’s also worth saying that it’s genuinely hard to track these smaller companies properly. Until they hit press or have a breakout project, a lot of them sit under the radar, appearing through individual films rather than big announcements. So rather than pretending there’s a full picture, we’re going to keep an eye on them ourselves and follow how they develop over time.