Audiovisual production is on the rise again 2021

After a year 2020 down nearly 500 hours due to the pandemic, audiovisual production rebounds upwards in 2021, doing more than getting them back, since the volume helped by the CNC last year increased by 792h (+21%) at 4.548h. Quotes fly away, registering a proportionally greater increase in 25,7% at 1.900,7 M€, reaching a record.

The volume of production probably had to increase further, the platform effect being insignificant in these figures, many of the productions of the latter being entirely financed and therefore not calling on the CNC, and not part of the statistics*. He is still there, online broadcasters accounting for 3.8% of total broadcaster contributions, compared to 83.3% for free channels and 12.0% for pay channels such as Canal+.

However, not all genres are in the same boat, while fiction and animation are in a good dynamic, both genders also seeing increased foreign investment, the documentary is more worth it.

Fiction hits record high, as well as its foreign contributions

The volume of assisted fiction increased very strongly by 37,7%, or 351h compared to 2020 at 1.281h, more than making up for the decline in 2020 which was a hundred hours, while quotes are up (a little less strong) from 32.4% to 1 090,8 M€, exceeding the billion euro threshold for the first time.

The reinforced order of the channels in daily serials weighs heavily in the balance, explains the CNC. They alone represent 156 additional hours, and become the first kind of aided fiction (42,6 % hours), before the series of 52 minutes (23,5%). They lower the average cost of fiction by 3.9% to €851.9K per hour.

Remember that after tomorrow belongs to us (Skip to content, 2017), then such a big sun (Skip to content 2, 2018), TF1 launched in October 2020 a second daily serial in access, Ici Everything starts (the illustration of this article) who play fully on the numbers 2021. The trend may not continue, however., France Télévisions having announced the cessation of More beautiful life.

On the financing side, investments by broadcasters are up but not by as much (+25,9%), their average share in financing falling to 59,1% quotes (-3 points), the producers, notably, making the difference : +41,7% at 208,4 €m i.e. 19,1 % quotes (+1,2 pt)

Foreign investments, less progress of 23%, reach their highest level since 20 ans. They take place a little less in the form of co-production than in 2020 where a European blockbuster (Around the world in 80 days) had made the difference, but more under that of the pre-sale. The number of hours benefiting from international funding increases by 40% (!) at 697 hours, more than half of the total. Among the fictions that have received international funding, The Girl and the Night an Alliance co-production (Skip to content, Rai, ZDF), or HPI which gathered a lot of pre-sales.

Animation, volume et international au top

Animation, gender perhaps the least affected by Covid shifts, which usually alternates high and low year, stagnated at 290-295h for two-three years and is on the rise again, of 21% at 357h, one of its high levels. Estimates are increasing more markedly (+ 28% to €314.5M), a level higher than the average of the last ten
years (228,6 M€). The average cost increases accordingly by more than 6% at 879,9 K€, its all-time high. With the fall in the average cost of fiction, animation is also becoming the most expensive genre.

Diffusers accompany the bullish movement, improving their investment 30,6%, their share in the financing, weakest of all genres, progressing to 21,5% quotes (vs 21,1%). The CNC does the same by injecting 42% additional (18,4 % from devis vs 16,7 % in 2020), and producers to a lesser extent (+16%).

But it is foreign contributions that are increasing the most : +32% at 91,2 M€, peaking. International is the primary source of funding for animation in 2021. Those are 83% French animation series that benefit from foreign funding.

Worthwhile documentary

The documentary is the genre that recovers the least. Recording a more modest increase of +6.8% in its volume at 1.869h, it does not find the level of 2019, himself down on 2018. His quotes are up 5,1%. Gender probably the most affected by the pandemic, he continues to be 2021 especially with regard to documentaries filming internationally, where there were still a lot of constraints on travel last year.

Its relative weight in French audiovisual production is declining : 41% works against 47% in 2021. In terms of funding, chains increase theirs moderately by 5,7%, the CNC almost not (+1,6%), foreign investments fell by just over €3m (-12,6%) and it is the producers who make the difference (+14,7%). In total, 464 hours of documentaries benefit from foreign contributions. The average hourly cost fell by 1,6 % at 197,0 K€.

The social documentary reinforces, logically, still its weight (+14,1 % at 867 hours), representing 46,4 % you volume total you genre. The story is also on the rise (+4,2 % at 344h) as well as the arts (+5,8 % at 7:30 p.m.).

Live performances again

Although still impacted in 2021 by room closures, audiovisual recordings of live shows are on the rise again, up 44.4% compared to 2020 (+228 hours) and 7.1% compared to 2019 (+49 hours) to reach 742 hours, level above 2019, but lower than previous years. The increase in quotes is of the same order, as well as, more or less, those of broadcaster and CNC funding. On the other hand, foreign financing continues to deteriorate (8,0 % at 2,2 M€). The average cost is more or less stable at 135K€ per hour (-1,2%).

The increase in volume is particularly relevant to music (+174h) especially opera (+48h), classical music (+40h), Jazz (+39h) and hip-hop/rap/electro (+30h), while theater progresses from 25h to 121 h. Classical music remains the first musical genre in volume with 175 hours, in front of the opera (98h) and variety/rock (90h).

*The automatic support account and the CNC selective help productions benefiting from the order of a television channel. The productions with platforms appearing in these figures therefore probably also involve a traditional broadcaster. The decree obliging the platforms to devote 20% of their turnover to French production, of which 2/3 to independent production only switched to the middle of last year, and the platforms have not yet been integrated into the general functioning of the support account. A selective experimental fund was initially set up, the lessons of which the CNC has not yet delivered..