‘French Model’ Boosts Production

variety.com:

Ben Croll While welcoming nearly 80 international productions in 2022, the local film and television industry in France continued its own substantial output, helping fuel what Vincent Florant, director of digital at France’s National Centre for Cinema and the Moving Image (CNC), calls “the French model.” “We like to have the best of both worlds,” says Florant. “To develop strong creative and technical knowhow, and then to put those skills at the service of international producers.” Below are four elements of that French model: • Line producers Like international adaptors, local production service facilitators deliver Hollywood production requirements through French working conditions.

Among the key companies leading the charge are Peninsula Film, which delivered for “Dunkirk” and “The Last Duel”; Firstep, which let loose David Fincher’s “The Killer” and guides “Emily in Paris”; Froggie Prods., which assembled English-speaking crews for “The Veil,” “Jack Ryan” and “Atlanta”; and Cactus Films, which recently eased the crossing for Netflix’s “Transatlantic.” • Seasoned animators Benefiting from a healthy export market and from internationally renowned training programs, France cultivates seasoned animators and VFX artists as much as it does wine or luxury goods.

So when looking for talent, some major studios tap right from the source. Since 2011, for instance, Illumination Studios Paris has delivered all manner of Minion (and now, “Super Mario”) mayhem from an outwardly unassuming studio just a step from the Eiffel Tower.

That small, mustachioed plumber of Japanese origin and Italian background at the heart of this year’s animation smash was, in fact, made in France. • VFX bonus Revamped to include a 10% VFX bonus in