Over the past decade 180 Studios, managed by The Vinyl Factory at the Gillette Building, has been home to the production of films including Tetris, Bohemian Rhapsody and Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. Today the studio has four sound stages totalling approximately 63,000sq ft.
Revitalisation of the Gillette Site: A Hub for Media Production
The phased redevelopment of the Gillette site, which has received planning consent from London Borough of Hounslow, will help to establish and contribute to an expanding hub of media production activities while breathing new life into this important and historical landmark.
180 Studios plans respond to a shortage of high-quality virtual production, film studio, and digital content creation space.
Gensler, a global architecture and design firm with extensive experience in film studios and heritage buildings was appointed, and developed proposals for a film studio campus on the site. This offers a unique opportunity to build on the rich heritage of the site while securing a long-term use for the grade II listed buildings in a manner that respects and revitalises both the site and its surroundings.
New facilities
The intention is to build on the existing operations over the coming years to develop the site into a state-of-the-art virtual production, film studios, and technology hub, with associated facilities specifically aimed at digital content creation and production. This will include additional sound stages (studio spaces) along with production offices, workshops, and other supporting areas essential for modern media production.
Heritage
The Gillette factory building is being retained and refurbished into predominantly office and support spaces that will complement the proposed studios. In addition, heritage buildings such as the Engineer’s House, the NatWest Bank, and the main section of the non-listed Campbells Building will also be retained. Other buildings on the site that can be adapted to meet the requirements of state-of-the-art virtual production, film, and digital content creation will be refurbished, while those that cannot be feasibly adapted will be demolished and replaced with new purpose-built sound stages.
External works will include the repair and restoration of the building’s external envelope and architectural features where required; and some of this, such as the iconic Clock Tower, has already taken place.
Address: 101 Syon Lane, Isleworth TW7 5LW
E-mail: lauren.paul@180studios.com