04/09/2002 - Jean-Pierre Leclerc appointed to head French film funding project based on CNC recommendations

It’s full speed ahead for the French government’s plans to diversify funding for the film industry. After last week’s announcement of intent by the Culture Minster, Jean-Jacques Aillagon, the latest news is that Jean-Pierre Leclerc, the president of the internal section of the Council of State and a former chief consultant to former Culture Minister, Françoise Giroud, has been appointed to steer the planning committee. Leclerc will base his work on a report that the CNC (Centre National de Cinématographie) compiled and sent to all French film guilds and associations.
Meanwhile on 11 September, Canal+ and representatives of the French film industry will meet for the first time since the pay-TV pulled out of an earlier meeting on 17 July. Then, the reason given was that Canal+ felt it was being victimised by French film producers who accused it of funding big budget productions made by its subsidiary companies instead of fulfilling mandatory investment obligations to independent productions.

(Translated from French)