Winslet a £60m asset for Britain

The Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet is a £60 million national treasure, according to an analysis of her value to Britain by economists funded by the government. Winslet was the first actress “audited” by the UK Film Council as it seeks to put a monetary value upon the country’s creative industries.
David Steele, head of research and statistics at the UK Film Council, has developed a formula for assessing the value of a “creative person” to the economy. Winslet was chosen as a test case for the calculation because she has a strong track record and is well known abroad. The actress has had a cultural impact well beyond the screen—Ian Callum, Jaguar’s chief designer, admitted he had had her curves in mind when thinking up the body of the XK model.
The “Winslet algorithm”, as it is jokingly known in political circles, is made up of many factors. The first is the star’s salary. Despite the success of Titanic, Winslet prefers to appear in cheaper art-house films. She made a record amount of £6 million for Finding Neverland.
The second economic factor is the “production investment effect”, in which a star’s high profile helps ensure the film is made in Britain. The calculations credit her with two-thirds of the £51.6 million spent on her British films.
The rest of the money comes from three sources: first, profit from the “box-office chain effect”, defined as the element of a successful film that marketing firms credit to the actor; second, the tourism boost from Winslet films; and, finally, and more intangibly, the “general promotional effect” for Britain. SUNDAY TIMES


Copyrights by TimesofIndia newspaper 09/11/2009