Written by new-contact on Oct 2, 2015. Posted in On Location

East London business park makes plans to become new studio hub

A business park in East London wants to establish itself as a major studio facility in the capital. Londoneast-uk Business and Technical Park in Dagenham has already hosted high-profile shoots like Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron and British drama Humans in its industrial buildings.

Site owner SOG Group now wants to create a full production hub to rival the likes of Pinewood Studios, reports the Evening Standard.

John Lewis, managing director of SOG Group, said a new studio facility would help cater for demand as more international productions come to film in London.

“The film industry and high-end television attracted GBP 1.5 billion of production spend in the UK last year and there are fantastic opportunities for more growth but we haven’t got the capacity to meet this demand,” Lewis told the outlet.

“If we do, I believe London could help double that level of investment to GBP 3 billion over the next few years and it is up to the industry to grasp this opportunity. I can see the potential for the film industry in Dagenham to become bigger than the car industry was.”

Large purpose-built studio facilities are a scarcity in London, but more productions – especially high-end TV dramas – are choosing to shoot in adapted industrial sites as they’re usually cheaper.

Purpose-built facilities like Pinewood – currently home to the Star Wars franchise – and Warner Bros at Leavesden are instigating long-term expansion plans.

Pinewood Studios recently started work on its GBP 200 million development framework programme, which includes building five additional sound stages by next year. Warner Bros at Leavesden has announced plans to expand its existing north-west London site by 25%, to enable it to host more big-budget movies and high-end TV shows simultaneously.

(Image: Marvel)