Based in Hammersmith, London, Storyvault Films are the production company behind Sky Arts’ popular Portrait and Landscape Artist of the Year shows.
 
What is Artist of the Year?

Portrait Artist of the Year (2013-present) and its sister series Landscape Artist Of Year (2015-present) are UK television’s two most prestigious arts competitions. Entries are judged by art historian Kate Bryan; independent curator Kathleen Soriano; and award-winning artist Tai-Shan Schierenberg. Meanwhile, Stephen Mangan and Dame Joan Bakewell share hosting duties, chatting with the artists as they work. 

Some of the famous faces to have sat for Portrait Artist Of The Year include Judi Dench, Sir Lenny Henry, Emma Bunton and Ncuti Gatwa. Landscape Artist of the Year has featured spectacular locations from all around the UK – from Loch Ness and the Forth Bridge, to Portmeirion and the Eden Project. 

The success of this mix of undiscovered artists, celebrity sitters, famous landscapes, highly respected judges and engaging hosts lies in platforming many artists who have gone on to receive national and global recognition. 

How has Cast It Reach helped the team at Storyvault Films who make PAOTY and LAOTY? 

Storyvault films has worked with Cast It Reach since 2019 and have come to rely on the platform and the team as a vital part of the application process. Both Portrait Artist of the Year and Landscape Artist of the Year are open access competitions where artists enter with a digital submission artwork. The successful applicants are chosen by the judges based on their artwork alone. Each year, the competitions together have around 4000 applicants, so standardising the online application process and putting everything in one place, as done by Cast It Reach, has been a huge help. 

What makes Cast It Reach work for you versus a manual casting process?

Cast It Reach has saved us a huge amount of time and resources over the years we have been using it. The traditional manual methods of just a few years ago were clunky and time consuming. It lets us sort and filter applications, view submitted artwork, move through the application process within the platform, and send communication to the applicants. We also know that we can trust our applicants’ data is securely held and only will be accessed by our team.  

What could you not do without Cast It Reach?

The two shows are quite unique in the TV world in that the selection is based on visual content, rather than personality. And art is subjective, so we need a range of checks and balances in our selection process. We also have an additional 300 artists in Landscape Artist of the Year who come along to the heats and take part – the ‘Wildcards’. This entire process is also organised through Cast It Reach. Our unique requirements demand a very specific and flexible solution. Cast It Reach has given us that solution.

What has your interaction with the Cast It Reach team been like?

The team at Cast It Reach have given us great support over the years, and have often gone over and above to solve challenges, meet deadlines and make changes at short notice. The cut and thrust of the TV production process means that things can be quite pressurised, and actions need to be done quickly. The team at Cast It Reach have never let us down. They’re professional, helpful and willing to think outside the box to help our shows. It’s also invaluable for us to have direct access to a team who understands the TV production process and casting in particular. Any query or challenge is answered by a real person at Cast It Reach who can apply their expertise to any given problem.