British film industry's parochial vision may end in oblivion, says Parker

The British film industry faces oblivion unless it kicks its addiction to "parochial" cinema and aggressively seeks a larger share of the £38bn global market, one of its leading figures said yesterday.

The warning came from the director Sir Alan Parker, who is chairman of the Film Council, as he outlined proposals for a "radical reinvention" of film making.

Addressing an audience of producers, distributors and government officials, Sir Alan said too much effort had been put into producing small- budget films, many of which were never released.

He said the entire focus of the industry should be switched to producing cinema made to meet the demands of international distributors. The result should be a home-grown cinema industry capable of competing with Hollywood on its own terms rather than being reliant on foreign-funded blockbusters and lottery money, Sir Alan said.

Speaking at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in central London, the director of Evita said: "International distribution is where the real money is made in the film industry. We need to abandon for ever the 'little England' vision of UK industry comprised of small British film companies delivering parochial British films. It's time for a reality check. We need distribution-led companies to carve out a British share of the $60bn world market. We need cinemas in the UK and abroad to show not just American blockbusters but films made in the UK with stories for and about ourselves."

The Film Council, set up three years ago with £40m of Lottery money, has itself come in for criticism despite co- funding two recent home-grown successes, Gosford Park and Bend It Like Beckham. Other projects such as Miranda, starring Christina Ricci, which reportedly got £800,000 of Lottery money, are unlikely to see the light of day.

Sir Alan's remarks came as 28 Days Later, the latest film by Danny Boyle, director of Trainspotting and The Beach, deposed Hollywood's xXx from the UK box office top spot.

Although part-funded by a London-based production house, it was backed and marketed by the American 20th Century Fox corporation.