In order to strengthen and renew distribution strategies in foreign markets for French cinematographic works, Unifrance, with the support of the CNC, has decided to set up a financial support scheme for the distribution of French films abroad.
This aid is at the attention of the distributors and companies registered outside France which hold distribution or use rights to an eligible work under the meaning of the guidelines, and present a release plan for the work that meets the criteria for attribution of the aid.
To consult the conditions regarding the recipients of this aid and the conditions relating to the works, please download the guidelines.
The aid is granted upon the decision of the managing director of Unifrance acting on the recommendation of a commission known as the “foreign distribution aid commission”, made up of industry professionals. Regarding the number of applications likely to be made by foreign distributors, the highly selective nature of the aid is underlined. Not all projected releases will benefit from support. The commission’s decisions will be final and there is no right of appeal.
The provisional annual calendar of commissions is as follows (5 commissions per year): January/February, April/ May, June/July, September/October, December (subject to available budget).
Applications must be received around 3 weeks before the commission (please check the precise schedule hereunder).
| SUBMISSION DEADLINES | ||
| Film release windows | Submission deadline | Commission date |
| From December 10th to January 29th included | Friday 8th of November 2024 | Tuesday 10th of December 2024 |
| From January 30th to mid-march (the exact date will be fixed on January 30th) | Friday 3th of Jannuary 2025 | Thursday 30th of January 2025 |
From now on, the applications must be submitted with all the required documentation on the submission deadline, including the letter of support from the sales agent. On this date, if one or more elements are missing, the application will be immediately rejected.
Kindly provide the documents compiled as a single PDF file and in the following order: application form, request letter (detailing release strategy), description of the distributor, marketing plan and promotional campaign (optionnal, but recommended), contract or series of contracts between the distributor and the sales agent, sales agent's reasoned opinion on the release (support letter).
You can now propose a second application at the same session if one of the two is a documentary or an animated film.
For any questions, please contact the relevant territory manager in charge of processing applications at Unifrance:
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Jean-Christophe Baubiat – jean-christophe.baubiat@unifrance.org
Territories: Africa, Greece, Netherlands, Middle East, Turkey, French-speaking territories
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Delphyne Besse – delphyne.besse@unifrance.org
Territories: Spain, Portugal, Latin America
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Elsa De Balby – elsa.debalby@unifrance.org
Territories: South-East Asia, South Korea, Japan
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Isabelle Glachant – chineseshadows@gmail.com
Territories: China, Hong Kong, Taiwan
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Morgane Rouault – morgane.rouault@unifrance.org
Territories: Central and Eastern Europe, Nordics
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Anne Takahashi – anne.takahashi@unifrance.org
Territory: United States
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Yoann Ubermulhin – yoann.ubermulhin@unifrance.org
Territories: Germany, Austria, Italy, United Kingdom, Oceania
Manager overseeing the aid scheme and payment:
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Capucine Millien – Capucine.millien@unifrance.org
