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BTG Corporate Finance has shown its support for the British film industry by facilitating investment into a small scale independent production due to be premiered at Cannes Film Festival this week.
White Settlers was made on a budget of £165,000, funded via The Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) a derivative of the existing Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS). The SEIS allows private investors to diversify their investment portfolio by injecting funds into specific projects. The investment is designed to help smaller higher-risk trading companies to raise finance by offering a range of tax reliefs to investors.
A suspense thriller, White Settlers is produced by Rachel Richardson-Jones, directed by Simeon Halligan and written by Ian Fenton. It follows the lives of a young couple from London who set up home in the Scottish countryside with terrifying consequences. The film stars Pollyanna McIntosh, who found critical acclaim in The Woman and Irvin Walsh’s film, Filth in 2013.
A total of 30 private individuals invested into the production of White Settlers, including a number of Begbies Traynor Group employees.
Jeff Barber, Partner at BTG Corporate Finance said: “Over the last few years we’ve seen a significant increase in the numbers of high-net worth individuals and private investors looking to explore more alternative investment models. The Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme is a great opportunity to help fund a range of diverse projects. White Settlers is a fantastic example of this.
“We’ve had a relationship with Rachel and Simeon since 2007, helping them to raise funds for a series of different productions. They have always come to us with not only their production ideas but a solid business plan and sales predictions, which makes sourcing investors an easy process.”
Rachel Richardson-Jones from Grimm Entertainment and the producer of White Settlers, said: “Access to schemes like the SEIS and EIS are essential for independent production companies like us. The availability of funding through the more mainstream channels is scarce so it’s no exaggeration to say these types of schemes are the lifeblood of independent cinema here in the UK.
“BTG Corporate Finance has worked with us from the very start and has seen us grow and achieve great things as a direct result of that support. We’re immensely excited about the prospect of screening White Settlers at this years’ Cannes Film Festival and we know without the support of BTG Corporate Finance and the financial backing of investors, we wouldn’t have those kinds of opportunities open to us.”
Rachel hopes White Settlers will be in selected cinemas across the country from September following its Cannes screening.
