Interview with Stéphane Rodriguez, director of the Gaumont Odysseum and Comédie cinemas, who is counting on several films to celebrate, this year (June 30 – July 3), a great cinema festival, an event which since 1992 has made it possible to see films at a lower price : €5.
Midi Libre – Sacha Leroy
Euro football, legislative elections… Will cinema really be celebrating this time?
We hope so. And quite simply because there are very good films on show: “Vice-Versa 2” which has been a hit since its release on June 19; the very great French feature film released this Friday “The Count of Monte Cristo”; blockbuster films like “Furiosa” or “Planet of the Apes”; comedies that everyone wants to see or rewatch, in particular “A little thing more”… We are rather optimistic and the current context means that this cinema festival may be the right time to enjoy a moment to relax with the family, to treat yourself to a cinema session as a breather.
Have major football competitions never harmed this film festival?
Not everyone is a football fan. And then, the schedule of the French team’s match (Monday July 1st at 6 p.m., Editor’s note) also allows you to have your evening free.
Does the operation generate an increase in attendance each time over the four days?
Yes. Around 40% over the four days, although this increase is still concentrated on two days: Sunday – because it is a public holiday for everyone, which allows you to see several films – and Wednesday. This will certainly be even more true this year as we are approaching the start of the school holidays.
How do you organize yourself? Do you plan more sessions during these four days?
No, we are not changing our usual programming. For example, we always have our morning sessions. On the other hand, we ensure that the films are in the right theater capacities, so as to meet expectations, even if it means changing them from one day to another to best anticipate desires. For “The Count of Monte Cristo”, given its duration (2 hours 58 minutes, editor’s note), we have planned several rooms to offer times well distributed over the day.
Even before the film festival, how did the start of this year go? Boosted by Artus’ film?
The beginning of the year was rather calm and, indeed, the nice surprise “Un p’tit truc en plus” allowed us to have an honorable month of June, so a first semester that ends rather well, knowing that we had a very good attendance last year at the same time with “Mario Bros” which was one of the hits of the year. The summer is also looking good, even if last year we had big audience films like “Openheimer” and “Barbie”. But “Inside Out 2” and “The Count of Monte Cristo” should allow us to hold the comparison, not to mention the few surprises.
Can Artus take advantage of the film festival and the summer to grab “a little million” more entries?
Probably, it’s a great offer and the desire of the spectators is still there, so we will support it for a few weeks.
Has all this allowed you to regain pre-Covid attendance?
We are still below, but this is mainly due to the delay in American film releases, caused by the screenwriters’ strike in Hollywood. We remain an activity which obviously needs films to be shown, so this penalizes us more than football or politics.
However, as you said, the offer remains plentiful for this film festival. Beyond the films you mentioned, what feature films would you recommend discovering during these four days?
I would first say “Survivre”, a French film that is both action and anticipation that imagines an inversion of the magnetic poles of the earth. It is successful, very spectacular, and it represents an alternative to big engines. There is also “A Quiet Place: Day 1”, which is offered in different formats, Imax and 4DX. There is really a great program.
