CoSTAR National Lab
The CoSTAR National Lab is led by the StoryFutures team at Royal Holloway, University of London and represents a unique collaboration between industry and academia.
Funded as part of the £75.6m CoSTAR Network Investment from the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Infrastructure Fund and delivered by the UKRI Arts & Humanities Research Council, it is the UK’s first national lab for Creative Industries R&D.
The Lab brings together cutting-edge infrastructure with world-leading multi-disciplinary research teams to speed up the use of new and innovative technologies in the UK's film, TV, and performance industries.
The CoSTAR National Lab is underpinned by its rich heritage in storytelling and a partnership that builds exciting new synergies between creative ideas and emerging technology; from deep AI and machine learning research at University of Surrey and games engine expertise at Abertay University, to industry-leading training at the National Film and Television School (NFTS) with an exciting series of industry partners including BT, Disguise and Magnopus, fuelling creative industry growth across the UK creative sector.
The National Lab will open its flagship CoSTAR Stage at Pinewood Studios in late 2026, with additional access to a satellite facility, the Futures Studio, located on the Royal Holloway's campus in Egham, Surrey.
The CoSTAR National Lab will not only benefit from being able to scale up their creative partnerships but will also be using the studio space to support smaller creative enterprises with accessible opportunities to experiment in a de-risked environment.
Businesses will be invited to apply for a share of dedicated funding support through Industry Access Programmes to develop their ideas in a dynamic environment that not only deepens and strengthens the UK creative technology ecosystem, but also promotes inclusive, sustainable and ethical innovation and business growth.
CoSTAR National Lab’s Director Sarah Ellis MBE said:
“As we experience the convergence of new forms of creativity and technology powering the Creative Industries and beyond, CoSTAR provides an amazing opportunity to enable our sector to thrive and navigate the future.
I'm delighted to work with the CoSTAR community as we all create, build, design and imagine this national infrastructure capability together.
As we open our CoSTAR Facility at Pinewood Studios this autumn, I look forward to championing the work to date and collaborating across the country to realise the scale and ambition of this unique and pioneering opportunity funded by AHRC.”
