Motion picture, video and television programme production, sound recording and music publishing activities (SIC division 59)
Division 59 of the UK SIC 2007 list. It holds 9 codes, listed in full below with the number of active UK companies filed under each.
What sits in division 59
The UK's screen and music industries register here. Production splits by what you make. Video production is 59112, the natural code for corporate, commercial and social content makers. Film is 59111. Television programmes are 59113. Post-production houses take 59120. Code 59200 gathers sound recording and music publishing, from studios to artists' own companies. The division is full of small personal service companies and single-project vehicles. Freelancers and productions both incorporate as a matter of routine. So the public record is unusually granular: directors, editors, composers and camera operators all show up as companies.
All those freelancers shape who sells here. Accountants who specialise in creative clients and touring artists build whole practices from these codes. Kit rental houses, production insurers, crew agencies and studio space providers work alongside them. Music companies attract royalty accounting, sync licensing and management services. A new incorporation often lines up with a first big commission, or a move from PAYE to contracting. That is prime timing for bookkeeping and insurance offers. Growth in filed accounts means bigger productions. Video companies are also easy targets for the poor-website filter, which makes them natural leads for portfolio-site builders.
How to read a division 59 code
A UK SIC code is five digits and division 59 is the first two of them. Everything filed under 59 shares those digits: all 9 codes below begin 59, then the third digit narrows to a group, the fourth to a class and the fifth to the subclass a company actually picks. Division 59 sits inside section J, information and communication, which is the broadest tier of the classification. So a code is read left to right, from an industry down to a specific activity.
More on how division 59 codes are built
Companies choose their own codes at incorporation and can change them on any confirmation statement, and Companies House does not check the answer. A company may list up to four. That is worth knowing before you treat any division total as a headcount: the numbers here are what companies said about themselves, on the August 2026 register, and the largest single code in this division is 59112, video production activities.
Working division 59 as a list
Division 59 holds 9 codes and 95,754 active companies between them. 59112 is the largest at 28 per cent and the top three take 71 per cent, with the rest spread across the remaining 6 codes. That is balanced enough that the division is a reasonable unit to work, though the leading code alone will usually give you a cleaner list.
More on working division 59
A caveat that matters more in some divisions than others: a company may register up to four SIC codes, and the figures below count every position, not just the first. A business filed under two codes in this division appears under both. Treat the totals as reach rather than a headcount, and if you need a clean list, filter to companies whose FIRST code sits in the division. Every company you pull carries the Companies House record, the director's name, a verified website and a verified email, and the ones we cannot complete are not charged.
Every SIC code in division 59
59111, Motion picture production activities59112, Video production activities59113, Television programme production activities59120, Motion picture, video and television programme post-production activities59131, Motion picture distribution activities59132, Video distribution activities59133, Television programme distribution activities59140, Motion picture projection activities59200, Sound recording and music publishing activitiesProspecting this division
Division 59 companies, as leads
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Division 59 questions
I'm a freelance videographer. Should I pick 59111 or 59112?
Pick 59112, video production activities. It suits corporate films, commercials, weddings, events and online content. Code 59111 is aimed at motion picture work, meaning cinema-style production. The line between them is loose and nobody enforces it. Choose whichever matches your work. Add 59120 if you also edit for others. You can adjust it on a confirmation statement whenever you like.
What should a musician or producer register for their limited company?
Use 59200, sound recording and music publishing activities. It covers recording artists, producers, studios and companies exploiting musical works. If live performance is the core business, 90010, performing arts, may fit better. Many music companies hold both. Companies House allows up to four codes and does not vet or approve the choice.
Find companies across division 59
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