The BFI, the British Film Institute, a charity and National Lottery distributor that runs BFI Southbank, the London Film Festival and the BFI National Archive.
The BFI, short for the British Film Institute, describes itself as "a cultural charity, a National Lottery distributor, and the UK's lead organisation for film and the moving image". It runs BFI Southbank and the BFI IMAX on London's South Bank, and BFI Player for watching at home. It publishes Sight and Sound magazine, runs the BFI Reuben Library, and puts on festivals including the BFI London Film Festival, BFI Flare for LGBTQ+ film and the youth-focused Future Film Festival. Its BFI National Archive is described as the world's largest film and television archive.
The BFI lists five aims. It wants to support creativity and find the next generation of UK storytellers, to grow and care for the BFI National Archive, to offer a wide range of UK and international moving image culture, to educate the public about film, and to work with government and industry to support the UK's screen industries. It was founded in 1933 after a report on film in national life, and it received a royal charter in 1983. In 2011 it took on most of the functions and funding of the UK Film Council. In 2024 it launched Our Screen Heritage to preserve online video.
The BFI's public face is on the South Bank in London SE1. Wikipedia says its facilities also include sites in Hertfordshire and Warwickshire, where film is stored and conserved. It also supports film education across the UK through the BFI Film Academy Network for ages 16 to 25 and by helping film and media studies in schools. As a National Lottery distributor it backs films and film education across the country, so its work reaches far beyond London.
The BFI's Culture Handbook says it is building an organisation with "creative storytelling at its heart", which is its own claim. Its Board of Governors is chaired by Jay Hunt OBE and appointed by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport; Wikipedia names Ben Roberts as Chief Executive, so check who currently leads it. The press team has specialists for trade and industry, the archive and heritage, and BFI Southbank, which shows how many different kinds of audience the BFI serves. We did not find a staff headcount.
There is a wide range of work. Archivists, conservators and technicians preserve film and television; programmers and curators choose what is shown at BFI Southbank and the festivals; cinema and visitor-service staff run the venues; the education team runs the Film Academy and schools work; the funding teams support the screen industries; and other teams handle press, marketing, digital, fundraising, finance and people. If you love film and want to work with it as culture, rather than only making it, the BFI has several routes. Its website lists current jobs.
Website: www.bfi.org.uk
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