- BNP Paribas is launching a new investment whose purpose is to finance films made by promising new talent in the film industry.
- With a budget of 1 million euros, the new fund will aim to finance French-produced, or co-produced, first or second films.
- The fund will be open to financing films of various styles and genres, and aim to support projects that reflect BNP Paribas’ values and social engagement.
By drawing on the BNP Paribas Group’s film-industry expertise, the ‘BNP Paribas New Cinema Talent’ fund will complement the Group’s existing range of financing and partnership solutions designed to support the film industry.
New filmmakers have for a number of years been facing profound changes in the way movies are produced, distributed and consumed. Some of these changes may hinder their ability to develop or realise their film projects, especially when they move from making short films to full-length features. BNP Paribas, with its long experience in financing films and its partnerships policy, is well-placed to understand these changes and meet the needs of the different players in the industry.
To mark the 50th anniversary of Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes, of which BNP Paribas is the official partner, the Group has decided to step up its commitment to fostering new films by launching a new investment fund, ‘BNP Paribas New Cinema Talent’, whose purpose is to meet the specific needs of talented new filmmakers. With a budget of 1 million euros, the ‘BNP Paribas New Cinema Talent’ fund will enable the bank to take a long-term approach by providing up-and-coming filmmakers with individual support and finance for their first and/or second films.
The ‘BNP Paribas New Cinema Talent’ fund will target French-produced, or co-produced, film projects of all genres, from traditional full-length feature films to series and more innovative formats. The selection criteria will include, in addition to the solid potential of the venture, a special focus on films that deal with major issues facing our society and in line with the values and concerns of the BNP Paribas Group: these include climate change, local ecosystems, diversity and social inclusion, and a positive vision of the future. BNP Paribas, whose Company Engagement activities focus especially on young people, will therefore use the new fund to assist and promote promising young talent.
“BNP Paribas has partnered with all players in the film industry for over a hundred years and is keen to support all kinds of cinema, from big-budget productions to the most innovative new formats,” underlined Bertrand Cizeau, Head of Group Communications and Deputy Head of Company Engagement at BNP Paribas: ”In setting up the ‘BNP Paribas New Cinema Talent’ fund we are today making a commitment to fostering new talent in film and positioning BNP Paribas as an accelerator for their careers and a long-term partner ready to help, from their first ventures to their first successes.”
In setting up the new investment fund, BNP Paribas has worked closely with a wide range of players in film and has brought on board people with great experience of the film industry.
Similarly, films co-produced by the ‘BNP Paribas New Cinema Talent’ fund will be selected by a committee of film-industry professionals experienced in the planning, productionand promotion of films, together with BNP Paribas in-house financing and communication experts, and based on a shortlist by Cinécapital. Cinécapital is a 30-year-old subsidiary of Cofiloisirs (of which BNP Paribas is a historical shareholder) and specialises in financing the film and audiovisual industry. It will be tasked with selecting films which meet the criteria set by the ‘BNP Paribas New Cinema Talent’ fund and which demonstrate a solid conception as well as commercial potential.
The ‘BNP Paribas New Cinema Talent’ fund will rely on the expertise of BNP Paribas, a major European bank for film financing, and will complement the Group’s existing solutions supporting the film industry. Through its Image & Media unit, BNP Paribas is involved, directly or indirectly, in financing half of all films produced in France. The specialised unit, which works with both independent and more established production companies, has major partnerships that enable the bank’s various audiences to enjoy film in new and innovative ways. Film projects supported by the fund will also be able to receive support from other parts of the BNP Paribas Group.
BNP Paribas is a leading bank in Europe with an international reach. It has a presence in 73 countries, with more than 196,000 employees, including around 149,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions in its three main activities: Domestic Markets and International Financial Services (whose retail-banking networks and financial services are covered by Retail Banking & Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking, which serves two client franchises: corporate clients and institutional investors. The Group helps all its clients (individuals, community associations, entrepreneurs, SMEs, corporate and institutional clients) to realise their projects through solutions spanning financing, investment, savings and protection insurance. In Europe, the Group has four domestic markets (Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg) and BNP Paribas Personal Finance is the European leader in consumer lending. BNP Paribas is rolling out its integrated retail-banking model in Mediterranean countries, in Turkey, in Eastern Europe and a large network in the western part of the United States. In its Corporate & Institutional Banking and International Financial Services activities, BNP Paribas also enjoys top positions in Europe, a strong presence in the Americas as well as a solid and fast-growing business in Asia-Pacific.
2017 marked a century of shared history between BNP Paribas and the movie industry. These 100 years have enabled BNP Paribas to build a close relationship and cultivate a set of joint values with cinema art, becoming over time the number one bank in Europe for cinema, with involvement at all stages of the film industry value chain. The cinema has therefore quite naturally become one of the main areas for developing Customer Affinity with the BNP Paribas Brand.
BNP Paribas a major player in the financing of audio-visual productions
BNP Paribas provides financing and support for filmmaking through a dedicated Image & Media unit staffed by experts who work exclusively on cinematographic and audio-visual projects. Every year, BNP Paribas is involved, directly or indirectly, in financing half of all films produced in France.
BNP Paribas the exclusive partner to national cinema promotion initiatives
Since 2007, BNP Paribas has been engaged in an exclusive partnership with the French National Cinema Federation on two major annual initiatives – Printemps du Cinéma (Spring at the Cinema) and La Fête du Cinéma (Festival of Cinema) – to promote movie-going. The Group is delighted to be able to enable as many people as possible every year to go out and enjoy the cinema.
BNP Paribas helps to preserve cinema heritage
BNP Paribas has helped to restore a number of classic film reels, including Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times and Les Demoiselles de Rochefort by Jacques Demy. The Group also supports iconic movie-theatres such as Le Trianon at Romainville/Noisy-Le-Sec, which has been receiving assistance since 2010.
BNP Paribas and Film Festivals
The Group provides support to over 40 film festivals in Europe. These include: in France, the Lumière Festival in Lyon, Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes, and the Télérama Festival; in Belgium, the BNP Paribas Fortis Film Days, which are held every year across some 450 movie-houses; and in Italy, where BNL is the main partner to the Rome International Film Festival.
‘Séance Radio’ and ‘Séance Ciné’
In 2012 BNP Paribas launched Séance Radio, a web-radio channel @seanceradio, which brings movie fans news reports and stories devoted exclusively to the world of film. In 2014, BNP Paribas launched the Séance Ciné app (available at the App Store and on Google Play), which provides an easy way for groups of friends to organise trips to the cinema.
BNP Paribas supports innovation
In a changing world, where new habits and ways of doing things are constantly emerging, BNP Paribas is more determined than ever to support change and development in the cinema world. Accordingly, the Group offers its various publics the opportunity to try out new ways of enjoying movies, including in Virtual Reality mode through collaboration with the MK2 VR space and the VR Arles Festival.
Contact
- French Retail Banking