How premiere of Everybody's Talking About Jamie and a cultural summit are putting Sheffield in the spotlight

To coincide with the film, the Cultural and Creative Industries Summit and South Yorkshire Cultural and Creative Industries Network will be held on Friday at the Showroom Cinema.

The two-part summit will explore how the cultural and creative industries in South Yorkshire can build on Jamie’s success, contributing to the region’s economy, with a reputation for fostering creative skills, attracting skilled talent, and building communities.

Mayor of South Yorkshire Dan Jarvis will open the summit and discuss how the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority will support these sectors and the opportunities that the release of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie can bring to the region.

He said: “South Yorkshire is proud to be home to a whole range of Creative Industries and a wealth of creative talent. In our Strategic Economic Plan, we highlighted the enormous potential within the arts, culture and heritage sectors in our region.

"They are a vital part of our recovery and renewal, contributing to healthy and sustainable communities, strong local identities, and vibrant places, as well as to our economic recovery.

“There is a real opportunity now to level up the North. If supported and nurtured, the Creative Industries can help drive growth and realise untapped potential that deserves to be unleashed.”

Host and creative coach and consultant Auriel Majumdar will introduce the Chief Executive Officer of Creative England and the Creative Industries Federation, Caroline Norbury as keynote speaker.

Caroline will outline the importance of making creative and cultural industries a strategic priority for the UK to bounce back better after Covid.

She said: “We’re calling on Government ahead of its Comprehensive Spending Review for investment in creative industries to regenerate our places, drive job creation, economic growth, opportunity, and community cohesion.

“It is important that we get it right and for government and industry to take action now. Investment in creative businesses, people and places will unleash innovation, level up all parts of the country, create opportunities and unlock entrepreneurialism, creativity, and sustainability throughout the economy. It will future-proof UK industries and jobs and strengthen our global competitive edge.”

Caroline will be joined by the Chief Executive of Arts Council England Dr Darren Henley to discuss the levelling up opportunities for South Yorkshire’s cultural and creative industries.

Dr Henley said: “As we emerge from the pandemic the creative and cultural sector will play a vital role in our country’s recovery. Culture is essential to our economic growth, as it revives our high streets, creates local jobs and most importantly builds a sense of belonging and pride in our communities.

"South Yorkshire is a hub of creativity and I very much welcome the opportunity to join the discussion about how we continue to nurture and grow the creative talent of the people living and working across the Sheffield City Region.

“Over the past four years West End and international audiences have enjoyed a slice of Sheffield by watching the smash hit Everybody’s Talking about Jamie, a musical that, thanks to public funding, started out as a Sheffield Theatres’ commission and production. The film premiere will allow a global audience to see for themselves the creative talent that is radiating out of South Yorkshire.”

The two-part event will feature two panel discussions. The first is a case study of the global success of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and will include Dan Bates of Sheffield Theatres and Mark Herbert of Warp Films.

They will discuss the journey of Jamie from its creative roots in South Yorkshire, to becoming a global, commercial success.

The second panel, titled Stepping into the Spotlight: Unlocking South Yorkshire’s Potential will discuss building creative skills and engagement and expanding on South Yorkshire’s visitor economy.

Professor Vanessa Toulmin, Director of City and Culture at the University of Sheffield, welcomed the summit and said: “It is bringing all the different cultural voices in the region together to have a uniform strategy for South Yorkshire, on the understanding that one size doesn’t fit all. This is to make sure our voice is heard.

"Everyone’s Talking About Jamie is amazing and the premiere shows how Warp Films and the Crucible have worked together to make it about Sheffield. It highlights that this city produces world class art and culture.

"Sometimes that gets lost in the cacophony of voices out there, this is our chance to say what we do is world-leading, it is about the city showcasing its work. This has continued throughout the pandemic and the premiere is a great celebration of Warp Films and Sheffield Theatres.”

Directors such as Shane Meadows have already chosen Sheffield to film in and part of This Is England was shot here. Dr Who was also filmed in the city.

Other events such as Doc Fest and the Children’s Media Conference raise the city’s profile and filming for the pilot of Sheffield-based sitcom Simply Ken starring Everly Pregnant Brothers singer Shaun Doane as narrator takes place this week.

Prof Toulmin said: “We have got an amazing community in South Yorkshire of talented and producers, it’s not just about the stars on the screen, it’s about how it gets there from the designers to the writers, everything needs to play a role.”

She added film production could play a role in the recovery from Covid and added: “People need to come back into the city and the venues and celebrate what we’ve got. Credit to the WorkStation and the people in the cultural industries to get together in a difficult time and make this happen."