A principal has encouraged students to pursue careers in the film industry amid a 'golden age of the silver screen' in the UK.

Jenny Craig, principal of the Buckinghamshire College Group, addressed prospective students last week, encouraging them to take advantage of the 'huge opportunity' presented by a boom in the UK's creative industries.

"Buckinghamshire's young people have a huge opportunity for highly skilled, highly paid jobs awaiting them in the creative industries.

"The expansion of and investment in the Bucks creative sector will enable local young people to gain crucial hands-on experience and start to develop key technical skills from an early age."

It comes after Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said the UK was entering a "golden age of the silver screen" during a keynote speech at a government conference on May 18.

Adding: "Our creative industries are world class. We rival any country in the world at sound and visual effects and are on track to double UK film space by 2025.

"Over the next few months, we will be identifying how we can go further. First - growing these sectors by promoting skills from primary school children to those returning to the workforce."

Data from industry body Screen Skills suggests that film and high-end TV production in the UK is likely to be worth an extra £2 billion by 2025, a rate of growth that will require the industry workforce to gain over 20,000 new recruits. 

The boom in large scale UK-based productions comes after chancellor of the exchequer Jeremy Hunt announced fresh tax breaks for filmmakers in the UK, boosting credit eligibility levels to 34% in March 2023.

Despite some backlash from environmental groups, including those opposed to developments on Green Belt land, studio complexes are appearing all over Buckinghamshire.

CEO of Marlow Film Studios, Robert Laycock, was optimistic about the future of filmmaking in the county despite his project still awaiting a planning decision from Bucks Council.

He said: "The government's ongoing and increasing commitment to grow the film and television industry is very positive news.

"Buckinghamshire is uniquely placed to deliver on this vision, as our outstanding heritage means that right now twice as many creative industry jobs exist within the Buckinghamshire economy than the national average.

"We'll be excited to work alongside other local sector champions like Buckinghamshire College Group to open more opportunities for young people."