What is this film targeted by the PAZ association for the use of protected animals?

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The PAZ animal association is once again flying to the aid of birds. Following the respective cases linked to pigeons in Orléans and fish sold in a Decathlon store in Amilly (Loiret), she is now tackling the film “Never without my psychiatrist” by Arnaud Lemort, with Christian Clavier and Baptiste Lecaplain.

What is the reason? We explain it to you.

The use of protected bird species

During the film's premiere, actor Baptiste Lecaplain publicly confirmed thata real European Goldfinch and a real “seagull” – identified as a Herring Gull by PAZ -, were used during filming.

“According to this information, the animals would therefore be kept, transported and trained for commercial purposes,” the association said in a press release.

However, according to the decree of October 29, 2009 listing the birds protected throughout the territory and the terms of their protection, these two species are precisely concerned.

And, although it is now legal to exploit wild animals for film production, regulations regarding protected species are much stricter.

For a few minutes on screen, the animals are deprived of their freedom throughout their lives and suffer the violence of training. When will the world of cinema understand that wild animals are not actors?

The PAZ association therefore questions the legality of this filming. On October 22, 2024, she wrote to the production “Atelier de Production” to find out if are the animals appearing in the trailer real or special effects. An email remained unanswered.

On November 12, 2024, she then send a registered letter to the Public Prosecutors of the Judicial Courts of Paris and Orléansas well as an email to the respective branches of the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB) in Paris and Loiret.

An alert to television channels

In France, television channels would have the obligation to finance French cinema while having the choice of the films they wish to support. TF1 would have provided financial support for the film “Never Without My Psychiatrist” with the help of TF1 Studio and TF1 Films Production.

PAZ then asks contact the channel to find out more but never gets a response.

On the other hand, after regular exchanges with France Télévisions, management has decided to evolve its Code of Conduct for business partners dated September 2024, by adding a clause.

This aims in particular to “limit the use of animals on filming, favoring whenever possible the use of images provided by image banks, special effects or animatronics” .

A clause deemed “only incentive” by PAZ who would like it to become “binding”.

Regulatory obligations respected

According to the French Office for Biodiversity in the Centre-Val de Loire Regioneverything is in order.

It is not our place to have an opinion on the situation of animals in captivity and their possible use in film shootings. Our role is to ensure compliance with the necessary regulations and authorizations. In this case, Mr. Chesneau is a breeder and animal trainer known to the administration. If the American Goldfinch and the Herring Gull are indeed protected species, individuals born in captivity and/or of the domestic variety are not subject to the bans on specimens from the natural environment.

The Loiret branch itself affirms “that in view of the information available to it to date and barring any new elements, the regulatory obligations linked to this filming have been respected”.

PAZ's demands

In 2022, the association revealed the acts of mistreatment of one of the greatest trainers in cinema: Pierre Cadéac. Now, as part of the law against animal abuse of November 2021, she is calling for a ban on the exploitation of trained and captive wild animals for artistic creation, particularly cinema.

“For the law to evolve, we are asking the world of cinema to stop using wild animal trainers. We ask television channels to no longer finance films that exploit captive wild animals,” PAZ said in its press release.

To support his remarks, she also initiated a forum In The World in December 2023, co-signed by seven artists including Marie Amiguet, Anne Combaz, Arielle Dombasle, David Hallyday, Raphaël Mezrahi and Vincent Munier.

A reaction from Parliamentarians

The law against animal abuse of November 30, 2021 provides for a ban on the exploitation of wild animals for traveling shows by 2028. However, she would not mention animals used for artistic creation purposes (cinema, advertising).

Faced with requests from PAZ, several Parliamentarians, like Christine Arrighi (Ecologist – NUPES – Haute-Garonne), Charles de Courson (LIOT – Marne), Danielle Simonnet (LFI – NUPES – Paris) and Céline Calvez (Renaissance – Hauts-de-Seine), demand the evolution of this law.

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