Sir Alan, who was behind Evita and Midnight Express, took the helm at the body - which oversees film policy as well as investing in the industry - in 1999 to oversee its creation.

I am delighted to have been reappointed as chairman and look forward to this next, very important, phase of our work

Sir Alan Parker

Sir Alan was previously head of the British Film Institute and has often been a critic of the UK film industry, particularly its organisation.

The director fits the unpaid, part-time role with the council - which began with a budget of �145m for its first three years - around his high-profile moviemaking.

"The Film Council was handed an ambitious agenda by the government and during our start-up and first two years of operation, we've been fortunate enough to have had some real successes," he said.

"There is now a clear and strategic way in which we use public money to support film training, script development and production."

Sir Alan also directed 1991's hit The Commitments

Film minister Kim Howells, who announced Sir Alan's new term, said he was delighted with the appointment.

"His experience and energy have been the driving force behind the Film Council's early successes in supporting and promoting the British film industry," he said.

Sir Alan's appointment in 1999 was praised by many in the industry happy to see a radical thinker who was a genuine heavyweight.

Five years earlier he outlined his stance on how the UK film industry should be organised when he complained to the National Heritage Select Committee about government neglect.

The director floated the idea of a production levy on tickets, quotas for British films to be shown in multiplex cinemas and tax concessions for British stars.

He said the council was "developing young filmmaking talent" and working with regional partners to set up new screen agencies in the English regions.

The film body is also working closely with the national film agencies and putting together proposals to change the structure of the UK film industry.

They will be presented to the government and the industry later this year, Sir Alan said.