Gilles Pélisson, the President of Unifrance, says the halo effect of the Paris Olympics will boost the country’s film and TV sectors.
The French capital hosted a successful Games and currently has the ongoing Paralympics. With the indie film and international TV sectors facing challenges, could the shine from Olympics rub off on the French business? Pélisson thinks so.
“The tourism industry is saying that welcoming the Olympics to France is going to be beneficial for the entire country for the next three-to-five years. I believe that if there is one hot country at the moment [it is France] because we can capitalize on Paris,” he said.
Unifrance promotes French TV and film internationally. Its President, Pélisson, is the former Group CEO and Chairman of French commercial TV giant TF1. He was speaking after figures for French TV exports were unveiled at the Rendez Vous event in Le Havre. The numbers told a story of industry consolidation and cost cuts. Total revenues from international sales of Gallic fare topped €200M ($225M), but sales were down year-on-year and in each major genre, including animation, for which France is renowned, and drama, which had previously grown at a fast clip.
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A former boss of Accor Hotels and Disneyland Paris –– the Unifrance topper understands the tourism business and the boost a successful Olympics can give other sectors. Sitting down with Deadline in Le Havre, he talked about the Olympic Games effect: “Everybody was impressed by the uniqueness of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, the Paralympics Ceremony, and people said: ‘Only the French would do that. It’s unique, it’s so different, it is modern, it is about diversity. I think a lot of countries in the world will embrace what they saw.”
Pélisson also spoke about France’s so-called 2030 strategy, which is designed to boost key industries, including the cultural sector. “The government has recently been encouraging the emergence of production facilities, which is part of the 2030 plan. You will see, in Marseille, in Paris and elsewhere, new areas for production and studio lots, which are going to be created or reinforced to compete better with the UK, which historically was the largest production facility in Europe.”
Belt-tightening at the streamers meant sales to U.S. buyers took a hit in 2023, but Pélisson noted the requirement on the SVODs to put cash into French fare, is buoying domestic production
“The obligation for the streamers to reinvest locally has generated a few hundred million Euros of investment. Suddenly, it’s not about just about Fauda or La Casa de Papel, but you’re talking about Lupin, Under Paris, Emily in Paris, and all of those productions that are happening in France.”
The Unifrance Rendez-Vous wraps today and gave some cause for cheer. International buyers turned out to see buzzy launches including Ca c’est Paris from Marc Fitoussi (Call My Agent) and Zorro from Noé Debré and Benjamin Charbit. Privately, however, many acquisitions execs conceded budgets are tight.
The 2024 export figures will be revealed when people gather next year in Le Havre. Pélisson is bullish on the fundamentals and long-term prospects for the French business, but acknowledges it could be another tough twelve months.
“Everybody anticipates that ‘24 is going to be a challenging year,” he said. “For 2025, we will see. The buyers have been consolidating, the streamers have really rationalized their acquisitions. Therefore, we do not want to be overly optimistic. However, we are fighting for market share of the acquisition possibilities that do exist. Certainly, over the next three years, we will be a better position.”
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