Following an initiative proposed by Elaine Dumont from the SODEC, UniFrance Films organized a day of meetings in Paris focusing on French-language co-productions on November 25.
Six up-and-coming producers from Quebec were selected by the Canadian institution the SODEC (Society for the Development of Cultural Enterprises) to travel to Paris to meet with six of their French counterparts, who were selected from producer members of UniFrance Films. All of these producers shared a common point: all had recently made the often challenging transition from short film to feature film production.
Organized as a sidebar event during the Week of Quebec Cinema in Paris and the Francophone Co-Production Meetings, this one-day event kicked off at the Forum des Images - Centre Audiovisuel de Paris with a round table simply entitled "Do We Produce Too Many Films?". Far from becoming a fighting match, this round table presented a topology of the various funding mechanisms available for minority co-productions, their effectiveness in terms of industrial criteria, distribution, and various aspects of European integration. Moderated by François Pier Pélinard-Lambert (a journalist with the magazine Le Film Français) and organized in partnership with the European Producers Club, the panel was composed of Marco Chimenz (Cattleya, Italy), Denise Robert (Cinémaginaire, Quebec), Joseph Rouschop (Tarantula Belgique, Belgium), Antoine Simkine (Les Films d'Antoine, France), and Ira Von Gienanth (Prokino Filmverleih, Germany).
The meetings continued throughout the afternoon at the offices of UniFrance Films. After a presentation of UniFrance Films' activities and missions by Mathilde Caillol, the delegation of Franco-Quebec producers had the chance to benefit individually from the advice and experience of four speakers: Souad Houssein (International Francophone Organization), Lilyane Crosnier (Bureau Europe Créative - MEDIA France), Pierre-Emmanuel Lecerf (Financial and legal director, and director of European and international affairs at the CNC), and Céleste Haller (CNC). The producer and distributor Éric Névé (La Chauve-Souris, Indie Sales) moderated the discussions.
These presentations included a comprehensive overview of the numerous funding mechanisms operating in France, Europe, and on an international scale that currently provide support for French-language co-productions. They also fostered shared reflection on the development of support schemes for these fragile projects and their creators.
The delegation of Quebec producers was eagerly awaited the following day in Brussels, where they continued their tour of the European co-production support mechanisms.
The second round of these in-depth discussions between the SODEC and UniFrance Films will take placed in March 2015 during the Festival de Chicoutimi (Chicoutimi, Quebec).
Quebec participants:
- Fanny-Laure Malo (La Boîte à Fanny, Inc.)
- Genevieve Lavoie (Productions des Années Lumières)
- Yanick Létourneau (Périphéria)
- Simon Trottier (TBC)
- Galilé Marion-Gauvin (Productions Unité Centrale)
- Olivier Picard (Parce Que Films)
French participants:
- Sébastien Hussenot (La Luna Productions, vice-president of the UniFrance Films Short Film Commission)
- Jean-Christophe Soulageon (Les Films Sauvages)
- Véronique Siegel (Bagan Films
- Alexandre Gavras (KG Productions)
- Frédéric Dubreuil (Envie de Tempête Productions)
- Emmanuelle Latourrette (offshore)
