Le Havre’s Unifrance Rendez-vous TV Market celebrated its animation celebration on Thursday, namely its latest season and 55th anniversary.
While animation has traditionally been one of France’s biggest exports, international sales continue to fade due to local toon show. This is probably one of the symptoms of the rapidly changing global market where reverberation is felt in Normandy.
As Gilles Pélisson, president of Unifrance, explained to Variety ahead of this year’s event, “Independent production and distribution faces increased pressure as they compete with streamers and integrated media groups.” Furthermore, “Broadcasters face the challenges of mounts, and platforms must adapt. We are witnessing an overall slowdown in market attendance driven by today’s uncertain geopolitical context.”
Speaking in the rendezvous, Gaethambruelle, president of CNC of the French National Film Centre, added: “We know we are sailing through challenging periods: contraction of international markets, changing consumption patterns, transformation of economic models, unfolding new artificial intelligence tools, all of which are deeply restructuring industries around the world.”
Nevertheless, he provided a bright review of the local production. “The French television series continues to captivate audiences around the world with its cat-eye adaptation from the cult manga, which won last year’s Unifrance TV Export Award.
Bruell has also promoted international sales, and despite the international crisis affecting the animation industry, France continues to shine with powerful IPs such as “Mystery Lane,” “Moran,” and “Miracle: Tales of Lady Bugs and Cat Noir.” ”
Major takeouts at this year’s Rendezvous:
Drama Up, Animation, US Tumble states export report
The harsh facts and figures of French television exports in 2024 were released by the CNC on Tuesday, September 6th, with Unifrance checking market trends. On the sunny side, overall exports rose 3% to 209.9 million euros ($244.2 million) from 2023, with the second highest level in 30 years being fueled by joint production ($135.3 million, up 58% from the previous year). The drama confirmed the status of the bestsellers (35.9% of sales).
In downside animation, it is weighed as the second-largest export category, but it has declined for the fifth consecutive year, with hits mainly with a sharp decline in US purchases, a reduction in pub casters in youth programs, both children and youth professional staff, and streamers who are breaking out of the medium in favor of entertainment and sports.
Across all program types, the report highlighted the need for a strong IP to promote sales in risk aversive environments. Regionally, Western Europe still dominated (43.2% of revenue), but sales to North America fell to record lows at 7.9% of total export revenue.
Safe Fiction Bets – Thrills and Light Bites
French crime – in various shades of noir – led the drama offer and flocked previously for Studio TF1’s “Hip,” Media One’s “Tom & Laura,” or French television distribution “Astrid Ett Rafael.”
Amid the new crime show, French TV’s Corsican thriller Vendetta had a flashy gala launch on Tuesday, attending the main cast and crew led by creator Ange Basterga and co-stars Thierry Neuvich and Vajina Giocante. Vauban. Federation International had a full slate of new crime titles, ranging from “Skin Deep” set in the world of plastic surgery, to “Vibliss,” “Family Case,” “River Patrol,” to hit multiseason writer “The Fatal Tropical,” and to the seventh run.
The Federation’s lineup wasn’t just about crime and dark drama. He was already promoting his first Christmas comedy, “My Hubert’s Christmas.” Wild Bunch TV was launching a red carpet for the sly-good Prime Video soapland “Escort Boys” season 2, but it felt like Christmas with its new offer “Single Bell.” “It’s light, interesting and has great adaptation potential,” said Diana Barca, head of Banner’s acquisition and international sales.
“There’s an appetite for solid crime and high-end series, but at the same time, bold foreign language dramas continue to go well when they stand out in the oversaturated market,” says Julie Maiteyu, premium content that balances the fare of English dramas and foreign languages.
Strategic Premipcom Showcase
Unifrance’s Rendez-Vous, which unveiled more than a month before MIPCOM, has once again proven its importance to French sellers and producers as a unique market dedicated entirely to French audiovisual works.
“Le Havre is a privileged moment of connecting with partners in a more informal environment: sharing meals, sharing events and creating a different kind of bond,” said Guillaume Pommier, co-head of Federation International, who highlights Le Havre’s strategic values.
“This year we also had the opportunity to hold a screening event for filmmaker and environmental activist Jan Arthas Bertland’s latest event documentary, Nature: Call for Reconciliation. ”
Executive VP Safaa Benazzouz added in the Xilam Animation distribution:
Europe is trying to harmonize viewer measurements
Yannick Carriou, head of research firm Médiamétrie, which discusses the need and advances in establishing greater standardization in audience measurement, highlighted the pivotal impact of the rise of ad-supported services (AVODs) among key streamers who force them to be more collaborative in viewer measurement. Max-Disney: If you are using ad-supported content, please visit Mediamétrie.
Carriou said, “Streamers needed to be held accountable to the brand, which tempted them to change their viewer’s attitude towards measurement.”
Regarding the US audience measurement market and main player Nielsen, Carriou emphasized that Nielsen is not self-regulated, but rather owned by investment funds, unlike the economic interest group consisting of Mediamétrie, Gie or Private and Public Actors.
“The US market dominated by streamers is rather complicated and ambiguous,” Carriou said.
Commenting on the implementation of the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), he said it was intended to strengthen freedom of expression and media pluralism, and to impose the superiority of the self-regulation model and the authoritative model of streamers through a legal framework.
Streamer Integrated Quadrant Market
Regarding the impact of increased concentration in the market, Julia Schulte, SVP international sales for French television distribution, said:
Producer Iris Bucher, CEO of Quad Drama, the maker of hit thriller Surface, said that when the US platform was actively chasing subscribers, the production has been “more difficult these days than it was five years ago.” “Money is getting more difficult. People are probably saving the future and making them uneasy,” she said. “We haven’t had that problem for the time being, but we will probably do that one day. So it’s even more difficult to sell French shows around the world.”
transaction
Brad Pitt’s LA-based Plan B Entertainment, part of Media One, has opened an office in London led by producer Ed MacDonald (“Baby Reindeer”), once again certifying the French pull power as a major financial and creative platform for audiovisual productions despite a large market build already among major indie players.
Oble has closed “The Plague,” adapted to Albert Camus with TV5 Monde, Walter Presents for the Us (PBS Masterpiece Prime Video), and Portugal’s RTP, and has been added to multi-deals like AMC Networks International Southern Europe. The show Helmer Antoine Garceau, directed by “Cole My Agent!”, premiered a strong acclaim on French television. Prior to its local premiere at OCS, the French comedy drama “Extra,” which was shown in a competition at Series Mania 2024, was swooped down by RTP and Swiss pub caster RTS. In another deal, the gorgeous era drama Winter Palace, the first co-produced by Netflix, RTS and Oble, also went to Walter Presents in the US, RTP in Portugal, and SBS in Australia.
Federation International sold the Jan Arthus Bertrand event documentary Nature – Call for Reconciliation to Cesca Television and Germany’s ZDF for the Czech Republic ahead of its screening at Lehäble. The call for individual actions on climate change first aired on the M6 in France in February.
Xilam Animation has added several European pub casters to the kindergarten show “Piggy Builders,” commissioned by the BBC, French Television and ZDF. New heavyweight buyers on board include Warner Bros Discovery in Italy, Swedish SVT, YLE in Finland, VRT Ketnet in Flemish Belgium, Telequebec in France Canada, and RTS in Switzerland.
French Television featured Alan Morrough’s historic drama “Unchained,” produced by Tetramedia Fiction. The show, held on Lenion Island in 1806, explores the French colonial past and stars Cannes winner Olivier Gourmet (“Le Phil”) and rising talent Enzo Rose.
The French television stream also added Maringasem’s sexual assault drama “When the Night Come,” produced by Top Banner Elephant Story. The thriller, inspired by a true event, was produced for France 2.
Regarding premium content, the sales division of Global Boutique Group APC Studios has joined the family of crime dramas, Blue Gold, produced by authentic French Television products. “Amateur” Barbara Probst is the headline of a soap drama with a curse tied to water as threads across two timelines: the 1980s and modern Provence.
Java Films debuted at Le Havre with the premium documentary “Franco: The Slight Corn Memories of Spain.” The film, produced by Galaxie Presse, is scheduled to premiere in France on Histoir TV this fall.
Children’s specialist Madgic Distribution has sold “Jade Armor” season 2 to RTBF Belgium in Telequebec, Canada. Hong-Kong-based PCCW has purchased packages such as “Nitso and the Very Hairy Alphabet”, “Lana Longbead”, “Isadora Moon” and “Jade Armor” season 2.
Myam! We distributed stop motion/live action “Trash!”, a 50-minute, inventive, eco-friendly comedy for young adults produced by Darjeeling for Arte France.
