Robert Moreland
Biography
I am a management consultant: first with a leading firm of chartered accountants and then independently. I have worked for a Canadian provincial government, spent five years as a Member of the European Parliament - where I supported efforts to promote the European film industry - and served eight years on Westminster City Council. As chair of Westminster's planning committee, I battled successfully to get a more relaxed attitude to filming on the streets of central London.
I currently chair the governors of Archbishop Tenison's, an inner-London secondary school, which has gained great benefit from its proximity to the BFI.
The first film that I remember seeing was Pinnochio, at age six, and I soon started going to the cinema once, if not twice, a week. I became addicted to the NFT in the early 1980s. Since then I have been a regular - including taking part in great courses on Alfred Hitchcock and David Lean.
My other interests are theatre (often the National and Old Vic), jazz, reading, music, swimming, rugby and cricket.
Born in Gloucester and aged 67, I have lived on the South Bank for many years. I was educated at Nottingham and Warwick Universities.
Supporting statement
"Building on Success"
‘Critical friend' is how I see my role as a BFI Governor: supportive of all that is good - and there is much that is very good - but always asking the critical questions and promoting new ideas. Above all, keeping the interests of BFI members and the public paramount, as together we promote the film world.
There is a lot to be supportive and positive about. The NFT in particular has come a long way: the extensive number of film stars, directors, screen-writers etc at showings: imaginative programmes from the work of great directors: the courses on Hitchcock, Lean, Kubrick and other greats: the Ronnie Scott jazz season: the seniors' programme: the Mediatheque: the new Benugo bar and the revamping of ‘The Riverfront'. The NFT has been imaginative and forward-thinking bringing in a wider range of people. I want the really positive trends of recent years to continue.
The real task is to build on this success. We should use anniversaries more actively - just as, last year, the centenary of David Lean's birth provided an excellent platform to promote his work and rediscover some forgotten masterpieces, like ‘The Passionate Friend'. I am also a great believer in developing programmes on and for special interests. I go every year to the cricket archive evening - let's develop a similar format for some other sports and hobbies.
I have lots of questions - and I am sure you do too. Can we exploit the NFT's superb location better? For example, how many of the families who visit the London Eye realise that we have an excellent programme for children, just a few yards away? Should the bookshop be bigger and contain a wider range of movie memorabilia? Could our entrances be more welcoming? Could we see and hear more about the excellent work going on behind the scenes? Why do members often get so small a proportion of their applications for the London Film Festival accepted?
I would positively seek out what others think and ensure these views are fully known to other governors and the management. As a former MEP and local councillor, as well as the chair of school governors, I know how to ask questions and call for action. My first act on election would be to set up my own interactive blog to dialogue with members about what they would like to see happen.
Equally, I would like to bring my professional experience to vetting our accounts and helping to lobby government - local, national and European - for more support both for the BFI and the film industry as whole. One area of development that interests me greatly is building a closer relationship between the National Theatre, the Royal Festival Hall and the BFI. There is huge potential here for some joint action in one of world's very best arts complexes. We can build on success - and I would like the chance to make a contribution to that great work.
