1um November, the opening night of the Cinemania festival, one would have thought that the heyday of French-language cinema had returned.
Moviegoers crowded like sardines into the foyer of the Cinéma Impérial on Rue Bleury in Montreal. The entire cultural elite was there. Unusually, Mathieu Lacombe, the current minister of culture and communications, was flanked by Liza Frulla, Louise Beaudoin and Line Beauchamp, all former Quebec culture ministers, not to mention the big bosses of Telefilm and SODEC, Julie Roy and Louise Lantagne.
The 800 seats in the hall were all filled with moviegoers curious to hear the triumphant speech by Guilhem Caillard, the festival’s general director. He gave the impression that French cinema was being revived in Quebec and that American blockbusters had better be on their guard. Even Alain Berset, President of the Swiss Confederation, who came to sign a new co-production agreement between Switzerland and Canada, spoke of Quebec and Swiss cinema as if they were living in a golden age, in a speech full of good-natured humor.
A SIMPLE ILLUSION?
All the pomp was an illusion. Will this French-language film festival, founded in Montreal in 1995, survive its 30th anniversary, which we plan to celebrate next year? Even Pierre Roy, its president, has doubts. Despite appearances, the enthusiasm for French cinema that the festival celebrates is no longer what it once was. And there are good reasons for Roy’s concern. The presence of French films in our cinemas is becoming increasingly rare and that of Quebec films lasts only a few weeks, if not just a few days.
However, the selection of films from Quebec has rarely been as rich as it is today. Directors like Sophie Dupuis, Louise Archambault, Sophie Deraspe, Anik Jean and others breathe new life and courage into Quebec cinema. Simple Comme Sylvain by Monia Chokri has just opened in France, where most reviews are laudatory. But our films, no matter how good they may be, don’t last long in the cinema. Most of us have to put up with watching them on the small screen and through the platforms that present them.
I went to the cinema several times last summer. Except for the premiere of the film “Testament” by Denys Arcand and two premieres to which I was invited along with all the artists and craftsmen who worked on the films, the cinema halls were almost deserted. I was even alone with my wife and sister-in-law for Solo, the remarkable film by Sophie Dupuis with the extraordinary Théodore Pellerin. At the end of the day, on a Saturday!
TAX INCENTIVES
Last year, theaters in Quebec enjoyed a brief resurgence, although attendance did not reach pre-pandemic levels. In 2022, cinemas welcomed 11.3 million viewers, but American films alone were responsible for the improvement. Quebec films, despite their number and quality, attracted only 9% of the audience. Not even the number of viewers that TVA’s Chanteurs Masquerades brings together on Sunday nights!
If the only window for our films is the small screen, our best filmmakers like Denis Villeneuve and Jean-Marc Vallée will go into exile. Minister Mathieu Lacombe must urgently consider tax measures that encourage theater operators to show Quebec films longer and distributors to promote them better.
