Netflix is looking towards a bright future as it looks set to be boosting content production in the United Kingdom. This has prompted the streaming platform to increase the size of its base at Shepperton Studios by twofold.
Shepperton is well known for having produced Enola Holmes and The Old Guard among others.
Netflix has allocated huge resources- nearly 1 billion dollars- to produce more British-made content, namely 60 films and TV shows in 2020. These include fan favourites such as The Crown, Sex Education and more.
Anna Mallett, the vice-president of physical production in various regions, expressed her delight. “We are delighted to announce the expansion of our production presence in the UK,” she said, as reported by The Guardian.
“The new contract with Shepperton highlights our commitment to investing in the UK creative industry and will provide a wealth of opportunities and production jobs, from entry-level to heads of department.”
Shepperton Studios has also produced iconic films like Alien and A Clockwork Orange and will now be doubled in size, ready to produce more content.
Their parent company, Pinewood Studios, the home to James Bond and Star Wars franchises, has received permission to expand the studio in Surrey from 14 to 31 stages as per plan. The site will most likely be completed in 2023. Netflix will use a majority of the expanded site but will allocate space for other shooting schedules as well.
Previously, the US-streaming giant was notorious for never revealing its data and numbers. However, following a few controversies and discrepancies, the streamer has started releasing monthly data that indicate the most-watched and most popular shows and films, both in English and in international languages, worldwide.
Recently, the streamer has revealed Squid Game and You to be some of its highest streaming shows with a massive increase in popularity. Netflix’s vice-president of content strategy and analysis, Pablo Perez De Rosso spoke of how it was “an important step forward” for the streamer to finally bridge the gap between the creators and the members.
He said, “People want to understand what success means in a streaming world, and these lists offer the clearest answer to that question in our industry.”
Talking about the overall success of the streamer, he said, “Figuring out how best to measure success in streaming is hard, and there’s no one perfect metric.”
“Traditional measures like box office or share of audience [for linear TV] aren’t relevant to most streamers, including Netflix,” said De Rosso. “We believe engagement, as measured by hours viewed, is a strong indicator of a title’s popularity, as well as overall member satisfaction, which is important for retention in subscription services.”
