How French Cinema Works

 

SOURCES & FURTHER READING

CNC Bilan 2022

Jonathan Buchsbaum, "Exception Taken"

Sarah Walkley, "To what extent can France
continue to defend the cultural
exception in the digital age?"

Jens Ulff-Møller, "Hollywood's Film Wars With France"

French Cinema, A State Affair: History of Cinema and Public Policies from WWII to the Digital Age

Ruth Vasey, "The World According To Hollywood"

US Film Tax Incentives Map

MUSIC (Via Epidemic Sound)

Drizzle Rider - Ted Beattie
Domestic - DEX 1200
Progressive Progress - Howard Harper-Barnes
Ascent - Martin Landh

ICONS (via Flaticon)

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The Nerdwriter is a series of video essays about art, culture, politics, philosophy and more.

[maellebonnin]

I'm a teacher in middle school, in rural France. Without the "Ma classe au cinéma" program, most of my pupils would never get the chance to see something other than a Disney movie in the theatre. It's such a great opportunity to study cinema as an art form !

[ThomasFlight]

Thanks for breaking this down Evan! I was always curious how this all worked. Being at Cannes it's obvious France is a country that, more than any other really seems to take pride in their cinema not just as an industry but as a cultural art form.

[rasmusn.e.m]

For smaller countries (such as Denmark, where I live), this kind of system is vital because the potential market for films in their local languages is so small that big-budget movies aren't even close to being profitable on their own.

[ZbLuffer]

Fun fact: I've just finished a videogame with the CNC logo in the credits. The game is called "Chants of Sennaar", and this is excellent.

[Maxalrun]

As a french working in the film industry, i feel like every french should watch this video. This is very miss-understood in France, and a lot of people are against this system because "it's public money for movies that won't be seen", but as you said, it's really not at all. The CNC and all the other aids (we have funds from regions, from private investors, TV channels that are obligated to invest in the cinema industry...) are crucial to our industry, and we make beautiful films, some even nominated at the oscars !
We also have a very very unique system for people working in the movie industry called "Intermittent", which helps a lot in terms of work stability.
Anyway, nice work, and thanks for that !

As a French Filmmaker, I would always defend the CNC ( even if I was more snubbed than helped by it 😂). Thank you for this video. Even a lot a French people doesn’t understand how it works here.

[Papy]

It's very interesting to see something like this, as a french person who mostly sees french ppl heavily criticizing the CNC, mostly because they only see that it's based on "taxes" and thus assume that it's general universal taxes, not to studios/on cinema tickets, and also because a lot of the french movies that end up produced by the CNC are... kinda bad, and those are the ones with a lot of advertisement. Still, I think that french cinema is a real goldmine, and I hope all the talk around Anatomy of a fall (especially if it wins some academy awards) will help those movies get recognition beyond our small little country. Just in 2023 there were so many cool movies, from more "classic" dramas (the taste of things, chien de la casse), horror/thriller (vermines, vincent doit mourir), scifi (le règne animal/mars express), and they exist in part thanks to the CNC, but mostly because there's a generation of incredibly talented directors who deserve to shine and be talked about out of the country.

[kioumim]

As someone who lives in France, i have never really noticed how cinema was a part of our education or at least never questioned it as it was "normal", but after watching this video i got to think of all the moments i got to watch movies at the movie theatre and later on discuss it in class. In high school i got to choose an optional class called "littérature et société", where we'd discuss/debate/study a lot of interesting topics(politics, gastronomy, litterature, journalism, art...etc/ nglit felt like Dead poets society) and one of them being CINEMA! With the few people in the class we got to go to a film festival in Aubenas called " Les rencontres des Cinémas d'europes" which was such an amazing experience and got to discover Mustang! I've always loved cinema and i think the cinema culture being very accessible in France definitely made it easier for me to have fun.

[cinecure]

I'm French and working in the film industry and boy is that music to my hears. Great work, thanks!

[thibautnarme]

One thing I feel was not stressed enough in the video: this system also helps maintain a degree of technical know how from gaffers to animators at every step of the production. Many of those technicians and their companies - which would eventually work form market-viable productions - have all started on CNC-led budget. Those also explain the outsized success of French cinema beyond its border. Something BC and Georgia are now starting to experience since to their long standing tax discount schemes... This know-how becomes a competitive advantage on top of pure accounting.

[alliesfrench]

Oh man. Thank you for this. I adore French cinema - there was a small theatre down the street from my apartment in Paris that would screen older titles - always packed, always riveting, and always followed by amazing conversations at the bar with my friends and locals. The French appreciate art so much it’s in their souls.

[ruskasielu]

As a French guy, I didn't expect to see such a video on your channel. That was nice ! Another topic you could have talked about is the "chronologie des medias": the fact that movies can only be shown after a set amount of time on different supports. Because of that, it can take a time (I'm talking years) between watching a film in the cinema and being able to watch it on Netflix for example.

[juma__]

In my country, Argentina 🇦🇷 We have our own version of CNC called INCAA, which has been crucial in supporting our film industry and preserving our cultural identity on screen. However, there's talk of defunding it to shift towards a more 'American' system, where private investment rules. While I understand the need for change, I worry about losing our unique voice in cinema.

[ThibaultFabre]

As a French person, i never realized how much important the role of the CNC was. It is a really great program that sometimes gets critized. I think the best part is the aid for Ma Classe au Cinéma, it allowed me to see mutiple films a year in middle and high school that has sparked my interest in cinema, and it's something i'm really thankful for. It is things like these that make me proud to be a French citizen

[LucasScremin]

In Brazil, there is a similar system in the Cinema Industry. The Fundo Setorial do Audiovisual (Cinema Industry Fund, or something like that) invests in projects for cinema, tv and streaming. The way money gets back into the fund is very similar, taxing every video ad, comms industry and video projects in general. Doesnt have the same scale, but the structure is pretty much the same. Even with some of the problems mentioned in the video, it works.

[CanadianOldChannel]

This reminds me of the music industry in Canada. For ages there's been good access for musicians to fund and promote their music, it's one of the reasons that in a country with a population smaller than California, Canada is constantly putting out huge artists to the world stage.

[djocko]

i remember beeing a kid in the early 2000s waiting all month long to get to the day we were going to the cinéma with my class to watch a 3h long 1930 movie or some animation film, no matter the movie we were all so exited to have to chance to be in the cinéma with our friends to share quality time and I think this initiative from the CNC is what built this passion for cinéma deep inside me.
Merci le CNC

[Nakhaan]

I'm a French guy working in the cinema industry from time to time. Money from the CNC is sometimes called 'Free Money' because we don't owe anything to the CNC afterwards, unlike investors and private companies who want their money back. (The CNC can only help fund a project partially, and cannot be the majority funder; it depends on the overall film budget). It's wonderful, but it is also a double-edged sword for independent filmmakers as it can fund your independent film, but if it's not successful, they won't give you any money in the future. It's like they give you a shot; you'd better make the best out of it, if not, no more help. And then it becomes even more difficult to try to make a new film. So, the mistake is to ask the CNC for funding for your first serious indie film, as your first projects are usually not the best. But nonetheless, I'm glad the CNC exists.

[plouviettheo]

I'm french, and I can say you're dead on. It's amazing that you could do this analysis compared to the US, and I even learned a thing or two. Thank you !

[zsht]

BFI is similar in the UK, although instead of auteurs these funds are seemingly preserved for the privately-educated