Festival and Film Production Officer NEW Rochdale Development Agency Posted today Rochdale £35,[...]

Contract: Initially 18 months with the option to extend.

Rate of pay: Up to £35,000 per annum

Hours of work: 37 a week, including evening and weekend work

Job Purpose: As part of our ambitious plans for culture, creativity, and regeneration we are seeking to recruit a Festival and Film Production Officer to support the delivery of an ambitious festival programme and support the work of Rochdale Film Office. The Festival and Film Technical Production Officer will play a pivotal role in supporting the operational delivery of a range of strategic Festivals and Events and the smooth running of the new Rochdale Film Office. The post-holder will work under the direction of the Festival and Film Development Manager and work closely with the Rochdale Film Office Manager to maximise the socio-economic benefits that these functions provide.

The ideal candidate will have significant project management and logistics experience in the festival sector with a good working knowledge of the technical requirements required to deliver quality festival and film activities, a strong understanding of the challenges faced by the sector and excellent contacts. We are looking for someone that is energetic, organised, and creative, a motivated, entrepreneurial initiative‑taker that can confidently manage an exciting and varied workload incorporating multiple work streams. You will be a collaborator, committed to building effective working relationships with stakeholders and the festival and film sectors.

Background to the Role: A decade of regeneration is reshaping our place, delivering new transport, leisure, culture and business opportunities with culture and heritage at its core. We have exciting new strategies in place for Festivals and Events, Culture, Cultural and heritage Assets, Visitor Economy, and investment to help us to achieve our goal of being a creatively ambitious Borough where our diverse community enjoys equal access to experience. The strategic Festival and Events function and Rochdale Film Office will make significant contributions to developing a positive place narrative for the borough, animating key urban and greenspaces, engaging with residents and visitors, providing creative learning and training opportunities. The services will drive income generation and inward investment contributing to the socio-economic life of the borough and galvanising Rochdale’s position as a great place, to live, work, play and visit.

Basic Objectives of the Post:

• Work closely with the Festival and Film Development Manager, RDA and Rochdale Borough Council colleagues to support the delivery of a range of small to large scale, indoor and outdoor strategic festival and events, delivered directly by the team or by our community and commercial partners.
• Work closely with the Film Office Manager and other staff in the RDA and Rochdale Council to support the Film Office’s day‑day business activities and maximise income generation opportunities.

Key Tasks & Responsibilities:

• Act as the Culture and Placemaking Team’s lead production officer supporting the delivery of the Borough Strategic Events programme wider alignment with place priorities.
• Support the planning, development and delivery of Festival and events, liaising with suppliers, scheduling and overseeing production including budget management, site set up and technical production facilities.
• Creation of key Safety Management, Operational and Scheduling Documents.
• Supervise freelance and temporary staff and volunteers delivering festival and events programmes as and when required.
• Collaborate closely with colleagues in Licensing, Environmental Management, Environmental Health, Highways, Insurance, Emergency Planning and the Safety Advisory Group to ensure that all festival and filming activity complies with all relevant legislation including Health and Safety, Safeguarding etc. and in line with industry best practice guidelines.
• Establish and maintain effective relationships with key Council departments, Community and Commercial partners to support the smooth and efficient running of the Festival Programme and Film Office.
• Process filming applications via FilmApp including setting fees in line with established rate cards, issuing invoices, obtaining Health and Safety documentation along with relevant paperwork, managing security deposits, booking parking or security, issuing keys or codes, seeking answers from location owners and productions.
• Support the Film Office Manager to maintain the Film location database listings including editing images and writing copy and tags.
• Support the Film Office Manager conducting location availability checks and offer alternative location solutions or dates where applicable and inspect activities that are as agreed and taking appropriate action if not capturing the activities when required.
• Manage the process of ensuring appropriate community consultation for festivals and filming.
• Effectively communicate information answering enquiries and responding to questions as required.
• Providing project updates to team members and stakeholders in a timely and clear fashion and assist in the development of written reports.
• Manage an accurate list of contacts and stakeholders.
• Maximise opportunities for social value encouraging associated training, employment and education activities for Rochdale residents.

Culture and Placemaking Team Structure: The post officer works as part of the Culture and Placemaking Team delivering production support across festivals, events and film office activities.

Knowledge, Experience & Technical Competencies:

• A relevant degree qualification (or equivalent) or 5 years’ experience working in festival and events production.
• An understanding of the role of Festival and Film within a local ‘whole place’ context (i.e. as it relates to regeneration, public health, local economy, wellbeing and education).
• Ability to work flexibly, delivering production management activities under pressure, on time and within agreed budgets.
• Experience of effective engagement with colleagues and stakeholders including public, local Councillors, organisations, investors, grant funders.
• Demonstrable project management experience including budget planning, reporting and evaluation gained within the festival or film sector, or other cultural sectors.
• A demonstrable understanding of Festival and Film Career progression roots and an understanding of working with CYP in education settings.
• A strong commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion & environmental responsibility, particularly in relation to film development project design, delivery and management.
• Demonstrable experience of the following: Critical thinking and creative problem‑solving skills, Planning, organising and effective time management, Decision‑making, Communication skills, Teamwork, Negotiation, Conflict management, Adaptability, Risk identification & management, Excellent IT skills, Ability to influence and negotiate, Ability to understand, demonstrate and apply RDA values, An understanding of the Rochdale context and knowledge of the local Festival and film scene, Experience of delivering training and advice and guidance to the sector including programming, business planning, access to funding etc.

HOW TO APPLY: We want to find out how your skills and experience are a good match for the role. In cover letter (no more than four pages) & CV or voice/video recording (10min maximum), please outline:

• Why you are interested in this role.
• How your skills and experience match the job description above.
• How you would manage the associated workload over the contracted time.
• How your commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion, and environmental responsibility is evident in your previous work / voluntary / lived experience.

Applications should be submitted to: recruitment@investinrochdale.co.uk

Closing date for applications: 12 noon on Tuesday 6th January 2026.

Selection Process: Applications will be anonymised and scored against the requirements above by our selection panel. Shortlisted candidates will be invited to an in‑person interview, which will take place in Rochdale on Tuesday 20th January 2026.

For an informal chat about the role please contact: Lee Brennan (Festival and Film Development Manager), at Lee.Brennan@Rochdale.Gov.UK