02/11/2006

The controversy over the impact of funding the formatting of cinematic works by television channels reared its ugly head once again at last weekend’s Dijon Film Meetings, organised by ARP.

Director Claude Miller gave a frank and open analysis of the current situation of French cinema, classifying production in three categories: “The first classification is features in receipt of television funding with production budgets under €2m, and whose scope is limited to intimate films (such as those by Christophe Honoré) or sociological themes ( Games of Love and Chance [+see also:
trailer
film profile]). The second classification is for films with a €2-7m budget and financed by large groups and banks. And what do the financiers and the economic decision-makers want out of all this?

“It seems as if we are heading towards a triumph of the politically correct. In terms of themes, violence is accepted if it is perceived as a game, and the screenplay has to be decisive (no ambiguity nor doubt). Neither Bergman nor Buñuel would have fulfilled these criteria. We can fear the promotion of moral and family values, which could make cinema a machine that confirms stereotypes and leads to the conditioning of audiences as television viewers.

The final category consists of films of mass consumption, with stars and wide-scale releases that suffocate other films. Mid-budget artistic cinema still has some fine stars with Jacques Audiard or Radu Mihaileanu. These directors are winning Césars awarded by professionals who are not, however, bending over backwards to produce their films."

Further comment came from producer Denis Freyd (Archipel 35) who highlighted the paradox that "money is being pumped into the French film industry that is churning out a lot of films, but arthouse and experimental cinema are experiencing great difficulties, with many directors no longer able to make a living from their profession. Producers can no longer survive making auteur films alone, they have to diversify (TV fiction, publishing, and more commercial films). Cinema has been downgraded, we are losing our public, the young, with population ageing now a reality."

Pointing out that at the outset Canal + refused to pre-buy The Child [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Luc & Jean-Pierre Dardenne
film profile] by the Dardenne Brothers because The Son [+see also:
trailer
film profile] had poor television ratings, the producer also attacked France 3 Cinéma, which in turn sparked a reaction from Daniel Goudineau. The new director pointed out that several high-quality films have been pre-bought and co-produced by the cinema arm of the public television broadcaster.

Lively exchanges dominated the event that has resulted in even chillier relations between some directors and producers and broadcasters, who are increasingly choosing to air more series than films.

(Translated from French)