05/11/2024 - Touquet-Paris-Plage is hosting debates on the topics of independence, diversity, media chronology, European cultural policy, ethical artificial intelligence and violence between 6 and 8 November

Never let your guard down and never rest on your laurels: this has always been the line of the influential ARP – Civil Society of Authors-Directors-Producers, who are at the forefront of the battle for cultural exception and diversity in Europe, and this fighting spirit will once again be on display in the 34th edition of the Film Meetings (unspooling in Touquet-Paris-Plage between 6 and 8 November), set to be presided over by filmmakers Céline Sallette (Niki [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]) and Thomas Cailley (The Animal Kingdom [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Thomas Cailley
film profile]).

France might represent a global stronghold for the robustness of film, having withstood the shock of the Covid pandemic relatively well, notably armed with a highly structured production funding model and boasting cinema attendance of 143.21 million admissions in the first ten months of 2024 (45,8% of which came courtesy of French films, thanks primarily to hits like A Little Something Extra, The Count of Monte-Cristo [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], Emilia Perez [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] and currently Beating Hearts [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]), but there’s no shortage of areas of concern which are of great importance for the future, and these will form the focus of five debates.

The questions set to be analysed on Wednesday 6 November are "Culture: essential to democracy but absent in political debate?" (whose speakers include the president of the Hauts-de-France region Xavier Bertrand) and "Film without violence, an alternative scenario?" (notably featuring producers Caroline Bonmarchand of Avenue B Productions and Alice Girard of Rectangle Productions).

Thursday 9 November will see the event examining the questions "Independence, diversity, media chronology: a model for the future?" (featuring producers Éric Altmayer of Mandarin & Compagnie and Frédéric Fiore of Logical Pictures Group,, and the co-president of Distributeurs Indépendants Réunis Européens Carole Scotta of Haut et Court among other participants) and "Ethical artificial intelligence, slightly, hugely or not at all respectful of copyright or at the service of creation?" (featuring MEP Laurence Fareng, the president of the Union of Film Producers Marc Missonnier of Moana Films, the general secretary of Google France Benoît Tabaka and that of SACD Patrick Raude).

Last but not least, Friday 10 November will see the question "Which cultural policy for Europe?" debated by Chris Marchich (president of EFAD and managing director of the Croatian Audiovisual Centre), alongside Emma Rafowicz (MEP and vice-president of the Commission for Culture and Education), Delphine Ernotte (president of France Télévisions and of UER), Juliette Prissard (executive director of Eurocinéma), Yohann Benard (Amazon’s director of French public affairs and of EU Digital) and filmmaker Marine Francen (co-president of the Society of Film Directors).

Also worth a mention on the agenda are screenings of Holy Cow [+see also:
film review
interview: Louise Courvoisier
film profile] by Louise Couvoisier (awarded the Un Certain Regard Youth Prize in Cannes), Mikado by Baya Kasmi, The Most Precious of Cargoes [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Michel Hazanavicius
film profile] by Michel Hazanavicius (well-received in competition in Cannes), Finalement [+see also:
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trailer
film profile] by Claude Lelouch (discovered out of competition in Venice) and Jean-Baptiste Bonnet’s documentary Save Our Souls.

(Translated from French)