Freelance Project Manager - BFI Places Fund Marketing Pilot

Freelance Project Manager - BFI Places Fund Marketing Pilot

Greater Manchester or East Lancashire

Film Hub North is looking for a Freelance Project Manager for the BFI FAN Places Fund Marketing pilot programme.

• Job Title: Freelance Project Manager – BFI Places Fund Marketing Pilot
• Location: We are looking for a freelancer based in the Greater Manchester Area or East Lancashire. Hybrid working with days to be spent on location at the venues is a must.
• Contract Type: Freelance contract
• Start Date: As soon as possible
• Working pattern: 2 days per week. 90 days of work are expected across the 12 months period.
• Reports to: Head of Film Hub North
• Key Relationships: Head of Film Hub North, Film Hub North Partnerships Manager, venues taking part in pilot project, partners, suppliers and consultants involved in the project, BFI Audiences Team, Film Hub North Communications Lead
• Accessibility: HOME is an inclusive employer, and we are committed to championing anti-racism, equality and diversity through the way we work, and the work we make and present. We actively encourage and support applications from groups who are currently underrepresented across the arts sector, including members of the Global Majority, d/Deaf and disabled applicants and individuals from lower socio-economic backgrounds. HOME is a Disability Confident Employer, and a Supporter of the Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter. Please contact us if you have access requirements to apply for this opportunity.

About the project

The BFI FAN Places Fund is a pilot programme designed to increase public engagement with independent cinema venues, using National Lottery funding to help them become more visible and accessible to their local communities. Film Hub North has been selected as one of three locations across the UK to undertake this innovative marketing-led initiative. The project runs from September 2024 to September 2025 for an activity period of nine months, plus three months of wind-down activity which will include third party evaluation.

About the role

We are looking to recruit an enthusiastic and self-motivated freelance project manager with robust marketing, PR and offline/online strategy expertise to support two volunteer-led and -reliant venues in developing and delivering creative, ambitious and practical marketing-led initiatives to increase their visibility and audience engagement. The successful candidate will care about supporting and championing independent cinema venues for future generations.

Key duties and responsibilities

Please note this is a non-exhaustive list, and due to the pilot nature of this project, other areas of work may need to be developed, within reason.

• Work with two venues to develop and deliver bespoke creative marketing and outreach strategies that will promote their spaces to local communities.
• Identify gaps in venues’ existing marketing provision and possible solutions.
• With input from the Head of Film Hub North, oversee the delivery of the project to ensure the activity’s objectives and KPIs are met.
• Work with an appointed evaluation consultant to ensure effective data collection for reporting purposes.
• Complete narrative and data focused project reports.
• Build partnerships between the venues and a range of local stakeholders – from local businesses to council and charities.
• With the Head of Film Hub North, oversee a budget for advertising, press, open days and outreach work, social media and capacity building/training.
• Regularly assess marketing methods and activities are effective and impactful.
• Support venue staff professional development and marketing skills.
• Coordinate press campaigns and events such as open days.
• Any other duties as reasonably required by the Head of Film Hub North.

The project manager is expected to carry their duties in compliance with HOME Equal Opportunities policies and Code of Conduct.

Minimum Requirements

• Experience of developing, delivering and evaluating innovative and ambitious marketing campaigns.
• Experience of working across all stages of project development and delivery, from ideas stage to delivery and final reporting.
• Experience of managing key digital marketing channels.
• Experience of press management.
• Experience in outreach and engagement of diverse audiences and communities.
• Local/regional experience to work on the ground with two film venues in Leigh and Chorley.
• Demonstrable commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion best practice.
• An interest and knowledge of British, international and independent cinema.
• Experience working in a film, art, cultural or community setting.
• Understanding of volunteer-led organisations operation and challenges.

Person specification

• Excellent writing and content creation skills and the ability to engage a variety of audiences through tailored copy.
• The ability to analyse qualitative and quantitative data, to contribute to project evaluation documents.
• Knowledge of digital and physical content production processes.
• Experience of partnership building.
• Strong collaboration skills and the ability to manage partner and stakeholder relationships.
• The ability to manage their own workload while working remotely and in a small team.
• Excellent attention to detail and the ability to listen to and respond to the needs of our partners and the communities they work with.
• A good understanding of brand identity, a creative mindset and an eye for design.

Aims of the pilot project

• Increase the visibility of the venues and improve audience (existing and new) awareness and engagement.
• Celebrate and (re)assert each venue’s central place in the social, economic and cultural makeup of their town.
• Highlight the venues’ competitiveness against other more mainstream local cultural and entertainment providers, and the true value of cultural cinema experiences.
• Offer the venues marketing methods that they could not otherwise afford.
• Enable them to have hands-on experience on developing and delivering place-based marketing.
• Leave them with skills, assets, experience and contacts for future activities. These will go beyond grassroots campaigns, which both are already able to do, but will instead celebrate the venues for both their history and their future impacts.

About Film Hub North

Film Hub North (FHN) supports film culture in the North of England through a combination of funding, training, advocacy and community-building. We help film exhibition organisations and filmmakers at a grassroots level, supporting them to grow audiences, screen great films and create exciting new work. Together, we’re expanding audience choice, improving access to cinema and nurturing a new wave of creative talent.

FHN is part of the British Film Institute’s (BFI) Film Audience Network (FAN) and forms a central component of the new Screen33 strategy. With 8 Hubs across the Nations and Regions FAN aims to build a broad film culture across the UK which recognises and values the quality of difference and seeks to rebalance under-representation on screen, in the workforce and in audiences.

FHN has established itself as a vital resource for the film industry in the North of England. Granting funds from The National Lottery via BFI, FHN has invested significantly in both the exhibition and production sectors, leading to hundreds of thousands of cinema admissions, dozens of new projects from Northern filmmakers and a more skilled, more connected industry in the region.

We’re led by two of the North’s main independent cinemas: HOME, Manchester and Showroom, Sheffield. From our offices there, and in Newcastle, we work across Cheshire, County Durham, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside, Northumberland, North and North East Lincolnshire, Tyne and Wear, and Yorkshire.

About HOME

HOME first opened its doors in May 2015 becoming one of the few UK organisations to produce new work across theatre, visual art and cinema with 5 screens championing the best of independent cinema. With a dedicated Creative Development and Artist Development Teams HOME supports and builds the creative potential of artists in the region.

About Showroom Workstation

The Showroom is Sheffield’s only independently programmed cinema, complete with a fully licensed café bar. It is paired with the Workstation, which is the longest-running creative business centre in the city and home to a thriving community of over 60 cultural, creative and digital companies. All housed in an iconic 1930s’ Art Deco building. Showroom leads on BFI Academy programmes supporting emerging filmmaking talent.

Applications

Please email an up-to-date CV with a supporting statement, providing examples of how you meet the listed essential criteria for the role by email to info@filmhubnorth.org.uk. Your supporting statement should be no more than 2 A4 pages. You also have the option to submit your supporting statement as a video (no longer than 10 minutes in total).

The closing date for this position is 06/09/2024 at 16:00