Fostering respectful working relationships and ensuring realistic workloads are among nine key Principles for Mentally Health Productions outlined by the Film and TV Charity.
Channel 4, Sky, UKTV, Disney+ and Banijay have signed up to pilot the implementation of the principles, which form part of the FTVC’s overhaul of its Whole Picture Toolkit.
Built over a year with 45 stakeholders from across the industry, the principles are designed for people working in all areas of production, from heads of department and commissioners to production managers and freelancers.
Grouped into three areas- people support, content impact and work planning - they are designed to help productions meet their legal duty of care around mental health, and to foster safer, fairer and more psychologically supportive working environments.
The charity said it represents “the most comprehensive, practical framework to date for embedding mentally healthy working practices into UK film and television”.
The charity is to offer producers, heads of department and people in leadership roles actionable guidance for each of the principles when the new-look toolkit is released in the autumn.
FTVC chief executive Marcus Ryder said the principles could be “truly game-changing”.
Describing the move as “the biggest industry initiative to address mental health in film and television in a generation”, Ryder said: “Importantly, we already have the evidence that productions that use the charity’s tools to adhere to these principles enjoy better mental health outcomes.
“This is a major step towards creating healthier, fairer and more supportive working environments across UK production – and we can lead the way in showing global industry partners how embedding best practice can not only improve worker wellbeing but also deliver positive benefits to businesses too.”
FTVC vice chair Sara Putt, who also chairs Bafta, added: “Instability of freelance jobs, lack of access to training and skills development, the realities of production working conditions and pressures from fewer job opportunities, are not only driving a talent drain, but also having a profound impact on the mental health and wellbeing of our workforce.
“As a result, we have put mental health and wellbeing best practice at the centre of our programmes.”
C4 chief content officer Ian Katz said the industry had “tolerated shockingly high incidence of poor mental health for much too long”.
He added: “Working together, we can set expectations for the wellbeing of those working on our productions to thrive and shape a future where people can do their best work without compromising their mental health.”
The FTVC's principles for mentally healthy productions
- Leadership and culture – creating a culture that supports wellbeing
- Relationships on productions – fostering respectful, inclusive relationships across teams
- Mental health support – making support visible and accessible
- Sensitive production content and themes – managing the impact of difficult subject matter
- Relationships with contributors, cast, and presenters – managing the impact of contributors, cast, and presenters on the team
- Production context – creating supportive and safe working environments for all
- Workload – managing workload to protect wellbeing and performance
- Working patterns – small adjustments can have a big impact on mental health
- Team Structure and role clarity – clear roles mean less stress
