14/01/2005

French film production remains at the highest end with 203 films made in 2004 including 167 initiated by French production companies (FFI) according to figures released yesterday 13 January by the Head of the French film body CNC (Centre National de la Cinématographie) Catherine Colonna. In spite of a slight drop compared to 2003’s record year (212 films including 183 FFI), this is an excellent level, the third best in the last 20 years.

The same trend is witnessed with the level of investments totalling €1124 million against 1153 in 2003. French film investments increased by €102 million to €892 million, a rise particularly beneficiary to FFI and that helped counterbalance the drop in foreign investments from €364m in 2003 to €232m in 2004. With this fall came a sharp decline in majority-French co-productions: 37 last year against 78 in 2003. This factor is explained mainly by the craze of French producers for a new set of tax incentives in France aimed at stopping the shooting of French films abroad. 111 FFI benefited from these incentives in 2004, and the number of weeks of filming in France increased from 785 in 2003 to 913 in 2004 against a drop in weeks of shooting abroad from 516 to 317.

Figures apart, Catherine Colonna also stressed the vitality of “the French system, truly unique, without an equivalent in the world”, and the need to preserve cultural diversity on the level of films on offer and on the institutional level, notably in Brussels.
Regarding the video sector which increased by 10% in 2004, Colonna stressed the need to “reestablish a loyal competition” in the pricing policy. Finally, she congratulated herself for the success of the Regional agreements: “17 have already been signed, generating over €21m for feature films and almost €7m for short films and documentaries”.

(Translated from French)