Northwest Vision and Media, create the bigger picture
A Taste of Hollywood in Bury
DESPITE being based in Bury, Hollywood Catering Services
(HCS) tasted a piece of their namesake last week when hit TV show
The Street won two International Emmys.
HCS provided the production facilities for the Jimmy
McGovern created series on location in Manchester back in the
summer.
Steve Rymer, Managing Director, is only too happy to have helped.
“These awards are fantastic for our television industry in
the Northwest. We are incredibly proud to have worked on such a
worldclass series,” he says.
On top of this win, HCS have also been crowned Facility of the
Month by Northwest Vision and Media, which works on behalf of the
TV, film, radio and digital content industries.
For productions on location seeking mobile make-up rooms, offices
and wardrobes, HCS provides it all in their fleet of vehicles
– and they can feed you too!
Leaving behind his own successful, Leeds-based facilities company
in 2005, Steve set out to start HCS in Manchester, putting his
contacts and relationships with television production companies in
the Northwest to good use.
“I’ve worked here, there and everywhere. Wherever the
work is, you go,” says Steve. “Facilities companies
need to be mobile and flexible, because productions don’t
just stay in one place. But Manchester is the place to be in terms
of television – it’s the main hub outside of London.
That’s why we came.”
An eternal realist, he’s the first to admit how tough it can
get, especially when developing HCS to include catering services.
“It’s difficult, as a one man band, to let things go
and expand,” he smiles. “Our facilities services have
grown hugely, whereas catering has been challenging to build up
from nothing. We bought some trucks and went forward from there.
Now we’re a really successful company.”
HCS made £1.5 million in its first year and has been growing
ever since, even floating on the stock exchange in September.
“We now have shareholders to keep happy! But it means we stay
competitive,” says Steve. “I like it.”
As well as contributing to the huge success that is The
Street, the HCS client list includes Northwest TV hits
Shameless, New Street Law, Sorted and
Cracker.
Steve explains about the industry: “It’s a small world
and a fickle business. If someone takes offence at you, you
don’t work again. Line Producers for TV programmes hold the
purse strings, so building relationships and doing an excellent job
are vital to getting booked for the next series they work
on.”
His motto seems to be: “You’ve got to do the jobs right
to get the jobs back.”
Providing both facilities and catering for productions means that
with HCS, money-conscious productions can kill two birds with one
stone. As budgets get tighter and tighter, people look for lower
costs.
Says Steve: “The first phone call we always get from a
production is ‘I haven’t got much money!’, but
that’s where we can help.”
Exciting new shows are increasingly being filmed in the Northwest,
and HCS are playing their part in making them a success. Recent
work includes the upcoming Clay, on location in Manchester
for Childsplay Television.
“A lot of our latest jobs have been for Alison Law at Company
Pictures, we work with them a lot. This last year we’ve
provided services for Max Beesley drama Talk to Me, and
undercover detective series The Ghost Squad, among
others,” says Steve. “They’re so busy all the
time, they want someone they can trust.”
For the future, Steve’s ambitions and confidence are high.
“I want HCS to be the biggest facilities and caterers in
TV!” he declares, and with a slate as busy as his right now,
it’s hard to imagine anything else.
Contact HCS
Unit P1 Bay 5
Heywood Distribution Park
Pilsworth Roadr
Lancashire
OL10 2TT
T: 01706 621 700
F: 01706 621 777
Freephone: 0808 100 3160
Features of the Month
- December 2007
