2017 Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée
Each year, the États généraux du film documentaire provide the public with a perspective on documentary creation, which is undergoing a period of intense artistic and editorial renewal thanks to the multiplication of transmission media and the possibility, induced by digital technology, to enrich the form with transmedia narration. This year, the historic theme of the États généraux resonates with the tastes and interests of our contemporaries, who desire to better understand the present through their appropriation of history, a trend also reflected in the growing number of history programmes on screens throughout the world.
This appetite for the genre in general is also noticeable in cinemas, where French documentary film enjoyed a record year in 2016, in particular thanks to the success of Les Saisons by Jacques Cluzaud and Jacques Perrin, Merci Patron ! by François Ruffin, Xavier de Lauzanne’s Les Pépites and Émilie Thérond’s Mon maître d’école.
Supporting works with a strong cultural dimension, the creative vision of filmmakers, and their points of view on the world is at the heart of the CNC’s missions. This is why we have reformed support structures for creative, historical and scientific documentary, as well as for fragile films, broadcast by local television stations, and which play a key role in cultivating new talent and creating original works outside standard formats. Similarly, we have reformed our “Images of Diversity” fund, designed to aid films which contribute to a better understanding of others, to intercultural, interreligious and intergenerational dialogue… all these images which are formidable documents of our contemporary history.
I am certain that the États généraux will stimulate once again this year many debates that will continue to enlighten us, and propose a remarkable programme, for which I wish to thank Pascale Paulat, Christophe Postic, and their team. I also wish to express my appreciation to the association Ardèche Images for its commitment to documentary, that genre which highlights the questioning of the Real by the image.
Frédérique Bredin
President of the CNC