Can Disney do good to French cinema?

French cinema is doing well in 2024 with triumphs like A little something extraof Comte de Monte Cristoof Love phew whileA fanfarereleased last Wednesday, confirms the trend. The departure of Canal+ from TNT shook moviegoers. Was French cinema threatened in its financing? Disney+ then announced itself as Prince Charming coming to the rescue of French audiovisual. This news is all the stronger as the partnership between Canal+ and Disney+ will end at the start of the new year.

Mickey's firm would be ready to invest 55 million over three years in cinema in France, enough to make professionals smile again. “We also manage to bring a part of French audiovisual production to life thanks to platforms,” insists Gauthier Jurgensen, journalist at the corporate site Satellifacts and creator of the podcast Originals dedicated to platforms. There is no need to worry: French cinema will continue to be nourished.

The chronology of the media in question

The love story between France and Disney is not new. The establishment of the Disneyland Paris park, the Parisian intrigues of Ratatouille a you Hunchback of Notre Dame confirm it. The only downside to the idyllic picture is the media chronology that the platform would like to see modified to be able to release its films in theaters and broadcast them between nine and six months after their cinema release. “Things will undoubtedly evolve in this direction but they cannot completely change overnight even if the platforms have a significant margin of negotiation,” says Gauthier Jurgensen.

The dream of theatrical release

Being able to show films in theaters would not only be interesting from a financial point of view but would undoubtedly give them access to big names in French cinema who are still cautious. “We do not yet have filmmakers like Martin Scorsese or Jane Campion who give in to the sirens of the platforms because French creators are keen on cinemas,” insists Gauthier Jurgensen.

And the content?

The question of content also arises. Will Disney be ready to collaborate in financing all cinemas or will the firm focus on mainstream productions? “It is too early to predict but the next few months will be decisive,” declares Gauthier Jurgensen. Let us hope that the diversity which makes French cinema so rich will not suffer from these new arrangements.