Industry Report: Documentary

Wilbur Leguebe • Commissioning Editor Documentaries, RTBF, Belgium

02/09/2009 - What is the channel's editorial policy? Which criteria does a documentary project have to meet in order to be chosen / backed by the RTBF?
The editorial lines include a broad range of themes as society, history, environment, geopolitics, heritage and culture.
Among the various criteria we consider: proximity, impact of the subject on the collective unconscious, nature of the event…

What is your annual production budget?
The total amount for co-productions is around 1.900.000 euros.

How many films do you produce per year? With which countries do you co-produce the most?
We produce around 40 – 45 films. The country with which we produce the most is France.

What percentage of the documentaries broadcast by RTBF are European but not local to your territory?
More or less around 20% of the films that we broadcast are European and not Belgium.

What are the most relevant financing sources for documentaries in Belgium?
In order of importance: the Belgium public television (RTBF), the Centre du Cinéma of the French Community, that supports documentaries through selective grants, the production ateliers and finally the tax shelter.