A panel organised by the CNC during this year’s Cannes Film Festival focused on the importance of UNESCO’s convention on the protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expression, which was adopted in 2005. For the purposes of this discussion, the CNC teamed up with the French Association for Independent Authors and Composers, SACD. Its executive delegate, Rascal Rogard, moderated the panel, which comprised two main sections.

In his introductory speech, the CNC’s new director Gaëtan Bruel painted a picture of the current situation, in terms of America’s overwhelming power over the cultural sector: "Cultural diversity is not something we should take for granted. It needs to be maintained and protected. It is precious and fragile; it is threatened”. In order to highlight the absurdity of President Trump's recent claims of a so-called outside threat to the US market, Bruel added that, today, European films make up 1% of the US film market, while US films account for 60% of the European film market. The panel involved veteran French director Costa-Gavras, who shared his commitment to European filmmaking and called out for solidarity: "We’re in a new phase of the battle. It might be even harder at present, but French filmmakers must stand united, and they will be successful”.

On the occasion of the convention’s twentieth anniversary, the panellists looked back on the genesis of the document which has been signed by 158 countries to date, and the EU as an additional political entity. France’s former ambassador at UNESCO Jean Musitelli recalled France playing a decisive part in the convention’s implementation. Similar to today’s protectionist and imperialist attempts by US President Donald Trump, the period after the Cold War saw Europe subjected to a cultural and economic offensive from the US. The aim was to use culture as a soft power to attract and convince others to adhere to treaties on different levels which would primarily benefit the US. It was at the time of the Mitterrand era in France. The President declared that “creations of the mind” are not to be considered commodities. Cultural expression has to be protected rather than negotiated over, as if in some kind of trade deal. This was a direct reaction to the increasing power of the US and its massive export of cultural goods. America’s share of the film market was growing exponentially and France wanted to protect its cultural products. It was at this stage that the concept of the “cultural exception” was first born and became part of the GATT negotiations in 1993. The most important achievement of this convention was the confirmation that cultural products are dual in nature: they carry identity, value and meaning, not just commercial value. As a result of this convention, all countries are entitled to take measures to protect their cultural diversity. And, most importantly, no past or future commercial treaty can overrule the sovereignty of cultural diversity following its definition in the UNESCO convention.

Four more panellists joined the second part of the panel discussion. One of them was Chris Marcich, president of the EFAD (European Film Agency Directors) and director of Croatia’s national film fund. Having acquired in-depth working knowledge of US enterprises and their investment ambitions while working for many years as a consultant for several of them, Marcich confirmed that the aggressiveness of Trump’s politics is, indeed, a threat. “The USA doesn’t have the right to implement protectionist methods following the convention which they also signed, but they really don’t care”. However, given the international recognition surrounding the convention, he remains optimistic that most of the countries will uphold and protect its core values.

French European Parliament member Laurence Farreng insisted that she’s definitely willing to do just this. “It’s a chance for Europe to become closer again”. She made no bones of the fact that it’s not an easy task, given various internal developments and power shifts in countries such as Poland, Romania or Hungary. She also feels that EU President Ursula von der Leyen has missed opportunities to emphasise the importance of culture in her statements, to date. This is crucial in Farreng’s opinion, and she’ll be fighting for clearer commitment from EU officials on this matter. Happily, she can count on the support of Stéphane Séjourné, vice president for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy at the European Commission, who was also present at the discussion in Cannes. “For the time being, there is only one EU programme specifically supporting cultural issues. But Creative Europe only accounts for 0.2% of the EU budget. That’s very little, considering the richness of Europe’s cultural diversity”.