Since the tabling of the last Quebec budget, the cultural community has been raising cries of alarm, demanding increased public funding. Independent movie theaters are no exception. Recall that a report from the Canadian Independent Operators Network indicated in March that 60% of the organization’s members had operated at a loss at the end of their most recent financial year. What if, while the Cannes Film Festival has just ended, we could find part of the solution in France?
The National Center for Cinema and Animated Images (CNC), the state company that supports the French cinema industry, unveiled on the Croisette the highlights of an upcoming reform of its theater subsidy program called “art house”. And although the CNC system may seem revolutionary in North America – we will come back to it later – it is clear that it works.
France has experienced one of the best post-pandemic recoveries in cinema attendance in the world, with 40% market share for local productions in 2023, according to the CNC. Far ahead of the 10% in Quebec (Cinéac agency). The French are also among the most cinema-loving people. During the year 2022, they went to the cinema on average 2.3 times, compared to 1.3 times for Quebecers — 2022 being the last year where this INSPQ data is available. What’s more, still in 2022, Paris alone had 398 screens for 75 cinemas, according to figures sent by the City to Agence France-Presse — the highest density in the world.
Ana Vinuela, who teaches the socio-economics of cinema at Sorbonne Nouvelle University, unhesitatingly attributes these successes to the CNC: “Its operation is unique and is part of a broader philosophy of state support for cultural diversity in France. »
More precisely, the relative success of independent French exhibitors is based on the CNC’s “arthouse” label. This categorization first appeared in 1955 with the creation of the French Association of Art and Essay Cinemas, which programmed films that were then called “avant-garde”. The label then became institutionalized from 1962, under the leadership of the Minister of Cultural Affairs André Malraux, who proposed tax deductions and financial support to theaters which complied with it.
Tax the platforms
Today, aid to cinemas comes from three main sources, explains Ana Vinuela: “The most important contributors are the television channels, which pay 5.15% of their turnover to the CNC. Digital platforms, including American giants Netflix and Amazon Prime, have also been taxed at the same level since 2020. Finally, 10.07% of cinema ticket sales are paid to the CNC. It is industry funding that is reinjected into the industry. »
In 2022, 468 million euros were paid to the state company by television channels, 127 million by platforms and sales of physical media, and 118 million by taxes on tickets. Each year, the CNC’s income is mainly used to finance French television and cinema. But a sum is also always reserved for arthouse cinemas. In 2023, this amount rose to 18 million euros, for 1,282 establishments, or nearly 60% of the total number of operators.
In addition to the aid specific to arthouse cinemas, other programs are offered to cinemas, including “aid for cinemas maintaining difficult programming in the face of competition” and a “fund for the development of cinephilia among young audiences “.
“France is the only country to benefit from so much state aid,” proudly says Sophie Dulac, president of the production and distribution company Maison Dulac Cinéma, which also manages five Parisian cinemas. Mme Dulac adds that, last year, its establishments experienced attendance “comparable to that of 2019”. “On the one hand, we’re trying to offer an experience that can encourage people to come to our theaters rather than stay at home and watch Netflix. On the other hand, we are able to offer this experience thanks to support from the CNC, the Paris town hall and the Île-de-France region. »
“Difficult to implement it here”
Sonya William, director of the Canadian Independent Exhibitors Network, calls the French system a “bold and interesting proposal.” “But I have the impression,” she explains, “that it would be difficult to implement it here, particularly their tax model. »
Recent history proves him right. In Quebec, in 2013, a working group set up by PQ Minister of Culture Maka Kotto raised the possibility of introducing a tax on cinema tickets to finance the industry, but the idea was not adopted. is unanimous among operators. The Association of Quebec Cinema Owners notably suggested in a brief that the tax would increase the price of tickets and that this would discourage consumers.
France is the only country to benefit from so much state aid
Furthermore, the sums that Canada receives from television channels through the Canada Media Fund or from its individual agreements with certain platforms, such as Netflix, are not redistributed to cinemas. They are mainly used to finance the production of Canadian audiovisual content. “These programs are absolutely necessary,” says Sonya William, “but we also need new specific aid for independent theaters, or at the very least an increase in existing federal aid. »
“The French model is not perfect, however,” emphasizes Sophie Dulac. More and more theaters want their share of the pie, but the subsidies do not change. We have been receiving 400,000 euros from the CNC for years, while our costs continue to increase. »
This is, among other things, why the CNC is working on a reform. “To subscribe to the “arthouse” label, theaters must of course present so-called “arthouse” films, but this category of films is increasingly confusing, maintains Ana Vinuela. It brings together both small French films and blockbusters, like the last Yórgos Lánthimos. So we have too many venues that classify for the label, and too few that take real risks. […] But France has always strived to find as many outlets as possible for its arthouse films. So the upcoming reform should reflect this philosophy and allow more cinemas to attract young audiences. »