Paris (AFP)

The nomination of Dominique Boutonnat, the head of the National Film Center (CNC), author of a controversial report on the financing of the 7th art, goes badly in an environment worried to see prevailing a logic based on profitability, putting in place danger the auteur cinema.

"Once again the government has made a decision unilaterally without listening to a large majority of the sector that has a different vision (...) Opposing a liberal vision does not mean being anti-reformist," thundered the Society of Film Directors (SRF), gathering 300 filmmakers.

"The President of the Republic has decided to + force +," lamented the producer Said Ben Said, seeing a "great detestation of auteur cinema and culture."

He who works with great filmmakers like Paul Verhoeven had felt, upstream, that this appointment "would mean that we should finance the films of Philippe Garrel and those of Franck Dubosc in the same way, according to the same economic criteria."

"We would not see anymore Philippe Garrel's films," he concluded.

Even before the nomination of Dominique Boutonnat, more than 70 filmmakers including Jacques Audiard, Palme d'Or 2015 and Michel Hazanavicius, Oscar winner for "The Artist", had expressed their disapproval in a forum.

The students of the Fémis - school forming the cinematographic trades had joined, evoking "an attack against the French cinema" if it was to take the continuation of Frederique Bredin, 62, whose mandate ended mid -July.

At issue: the report commissioned by Bercy and the Ministry of Culture on the financing of cinema, handed in mid-May by Dominique Boutonnat.

While reaffirming the role of the National Film Center as a "regulator", he advocated developing the share of private financing to complement existing public support. Among the options on the table, he discusses investment funds and the development of blockchain, a popular technology based on cryptocurrencies.

- "Dialogue and consultation" -

For its detractors, this report which speaks of "profitability of assets" and points the risk of "a policy of birth of works" (overproduction of films, ed) has no other ambition than to privilege a commercial logic.

This is "the first time a film professional is chosen to lead the CNC," defended the Elysee.

The person himself has responded to the criticisms in Le Figaro. "With CNC teams, my goal will be to preserve our cultural exception by having an obsession: diversity, quality and freedom of creation," he assured, confirming in passing that he would disengage from all his mandates and sell the shares of its companies, to avoid any conflict of interest.

"I intend to protect and strengthen the CNC as much as our model, unique and envied around the world," insisted the new leader.

Another aspect of the producer of "Untouchables" or "Polisse" worries: his support for the campaign of Emmanuel Macron in 2016, which feeds suspicions of lift return.

"I, like others, donated 7,500 euros to support Emmanuel Macron's campaign, because I appreciated his vision" but "I never got involved in a political party and I'm not a member d'en marche ", defended the producer, in Le Figaro.

Aged 49, the brother of Laurent Boutonnat, composer of Mylène Farmer, worked ten years at Axa, before embarking on the cinema in 2005.

In particular, he used a tax niche that had been abolished two years ago, which made it possible to deduct from his ISF the investments made in SMEs to obtain private financing for film and audiovisual creation.

The label ISF Cinema, which he co-created in 2009, proposed to invest in companies to co-finance (alongside major producers) a set of several films.

"He has contributed to the production of about 250 particularly diverse cinematographic and audiovisual works," the CNC said in a statement, citing the latest "In freedom!" of Pierre Salvadori and "The Song of the Wolf" by Antonin Baudry (2019).

© 2019 AFP