“It is a great time to be British in the entertainment industry,” Variety’s publisher and co-president Dea Lawrence told an enthusiastic crowd in London Monday as she explained why the publication was bringing Power of Women, one of its tentpole franchises, to the U.K. capital.
Lawrence was in conversation with Katy Wickremesinghe, creator of content platform The Wick, at an event hosted by Culture3 in partnership with UK House, which was running as part of the packed schedule of SXSW London, whose second edition kicked off Monday.
Film and premium television production spend in Britain grew 22% to £6.8 billion ($9.12 billion) last year, according to the British Film Institute.
“It is a very pivotal moment where right now there’s a convergence between the creative, the technology and the storytelling, and Britain, with its fabulous talent, its production facilities and its IP, are able to be resonating culturally far above the size of the country,” Lawrence said. “And what’s happening right now is that London and the U.K. is the second largest entertainment hub in the world, which is why we’re here with Power of Women, and why we’re coming with many, many more events.”
Variety’s Power of Women London event takes place on Wednesday, in the presence of honorees Emilia Clarke, Emma Corrin, Cynthia Erivo, Hannah Waddingham and Suki Waterhouse.
Although the U.K. tax incentive and the strength of the local crews and creative talent are a major attraction, the country’s “distinctive storytelling” was of great importance too, Lawrence said. “The stories that are being told here are unique to Britain, but there’s this rare magical element that they translate globally, and that is really special.”
Lawrence also spoke about Variety’s evolution over its 120 year history from a daily paper into a multiplatform publisher. “Initially Variety started by reporting the news; now we report the news, we interpret the news, and we connect the community to the news and make them a part of the conversation,” she said.
She also explained how Variety franchises created cultural moments, such those sparked in the past year by Sydney Sweeney at the Power of Women event in Los Angeles and Timothée Chalamet with Actors on Actors. “We are a cultural brand,” she said.
Lawrence also commented on the growth of AI and other technologies in show business, but underscored the centrality of the “human element.” “We’re going to be able to use AI and some of this new technology in such a way with humans to make something greater,” she said. “I don’t know that you’re going to be able to make a $50 million movie by yourself, probably not, but you will be able to make something that you couldn’t make 10 years ago. I hope that it’s going to help create more projects.”
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