16/06/2003

The French have rediscovered cinema. 2003 got off to a poor start, but Gallic exhibitors are rejoicing after an excellent May when 14.9 million tickets were sold, a 14.4 per cent increase on May 2002, according to the latest statistics published by the CNC.

From 1 January to 31 May 2003, French film theatres were visited by 76.4 million people, 7.4 per cent fewer than the same period in 2002 although a 12-month analysis of the data gives a much less dramatic result, with attendance down just 3.4 per cent that corresponds to a total of 178.3 million tickets sold. A significant 10.9 per cent drop was reported for the first quarter of 2003 followed by a poor April, but now its seems French exhibitors have cause for optimism.
In market terms, 42.1 per cent of French filmgoers chose to see a domestic production, compared to 46.9 per cent for the same period last year. US productions occupy 46.4 per cent of the domestic market, compared to 36.8 per cent for Jan-May 2002.

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It is expected that the share of the French market occupied by US productions will grow in June, and most especially in July and August when numerous B-list Hollywood films are released with little or no competition from domestic productions. Following the signing of an agreement between the National Film and National Distributors’ Federations (FNDF) – headed by Marin Karmitz, this year might just be different. The goal of this agreement was to ensure that films were released more evenly and intelligently over a twelve-month period, thus avoiding the usual gridlocks of November-December and February-April.

(Translated from French)