Hugh Jackman filming Les Miserables at Chatham Historic Dockyard

by Jo Earle

Around £6 million has been put back into the Kent economy thanks to big Hollywood Blockbusters such as Les Miserables and Great Expectations.

That is a record year for the county, with 2008/2009 holding the previous record - for generating £4.5m.

Some of the scenes from Les Mis - which is nominated for several awards at the Oscars tonight - were filmed at the Historic Dockyard in Chatham.

Gabrielle Lindemann is from the Kent Film Office at Kent County Council.

She said: "It's lovely to have big stars coming to the county. In the last year the Kent Film Office has been extremely successful in attracting some big names.

"Initially when the location managers of Les Mis came to us it was because they were looking for marshland where Great Expectations had filmed a few months before.

Ralph Fiennes as Abel Magwitch in Great Expectations

"Sadly they couldn't go there as filming clashed with the breeding season of some birds.

"The Dockside has some really special visuals that fitted into the story really well.

"It has a large urban environment but it's also quiet for them to get the right sound recordings.

"Kent has a huge variety of landscapes so when a film company comes down they can film in many different environments which is always extremely attractive.

On average the Kent Film Office generates £2 million a year into the Kent economy, but this year that figure has risen to £6 million.

The Muppets... Again! being filmed in the Historic Dockyard Chatham

Les Mis, Great Expectations and TV feature dramas have all played a huge part in that.

The Kent Film Office's role is largely to attract film companies into the county by attracting and promoting locations.

Gabrielle added: "Our relationship with a lot of UK and foreign location managers means that they know us, know we have a certain brand and can trust we can handle large productions.

"They initially come to us and tell us their requirements. We put them in touch with the location's owners who will oversee the actual day to day filming.

"Over the next year we can look forward to seeing the dockyard feature in the new Muppets movie. They've recently been spotted filming at the Dockyards.

"A couple of large TV dramas will also be coming out in the summer, one of which was filmed entirely in Faversham."

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