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French law requires movies shown in theaters in France to stay off streaming for 36 months. It's an absurd regulatory capture on par with us auto dealer requir
by readams 9y ago
French law requires movies shown in theaters in France to stay off streaming for 36 months. It's an absurd regulatory capture on par with us auto dealer requirements.
- debt 9y agoA film should only be shown in a theater to create a true cinematic experience. I don’t think the regulation is absurd at all. If Netflix makes films and shows them only within a TV format, than it’s a tv show. The cinematic arts requires a cinema by definition.
- reedx8 9y agoThe working definition of a "TV show" is a series with regular installments/showings overtime, or at least many shorter length shows. A "movie" is the opposite, with just one production film. This is flexible, of course, as a movie can have later installments, but it is not its primary purpose. There are many "movies" that never make it to the Cinemas because of bad production value, ie bad movies! Your definition would call Netflix's recent film "Bright" a show, which of course it is not. Cannes is being ridiculous.
- titanomachy 9y agoIf this is sarcasm, it's very subtle and the point is lost on me.
- B1FF_PSUVM 9y agoYou may find this informative, if you have a couple of minutes to spare: https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Transformation+of+Quantitative+Into+Qualitative+Changes https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Transformation+o... (or some other hit on "quantitative change leads to qualitative change")
- debt 9y agoA film requires an extremely large format display. Not a small high definition display. Ideally it'd be a large, high definition display. How a film is displayed informs how the film is shot. The same would go for audio as well. How the audio is heard informs how the audio is mixed and mastered. Not to be condescending, but it's really not hard to understand. People don't make films to be shown on a phone for instance. Or if they do make films to be shown on a phone, then it's not a film they'll be making.
- rblatz 9y agoBeing in a room with sticky floors and rude people that can’t put their phone down doesn’t some how elevate art.
- jogjayr 9y agoWait wait...French law as in law by the French government? You get hit wit fines by the government if you defy it? Or an industry norm like "If you allow streaming within 36 months of a theatrical release we won't talk to you/union workers won't work for you/no awards for you"? If it's an actual law, that sounds utterly absurd. Good on Netflix for not playing ball.
- valinor4 9y agoYes, it is an actual law made to protect theaters and the movie industry. More information on it: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronologie_des_m%C3%A9dias https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronologie_des_m%C3%A9dias
- boudin 9y agoTo be a bit more precise, the law on it self doesn't define the delays between different media releases, it only enforce those. Delays are defined by agreement between the different industry actors. I guess that the fact there's no big French streaming company make those delays quite unbalanced in favor of movies theatres and tv channels (that often produce movies released in theatres)
- namdnay 9y agoWelcome to France :) We have laws on the percentage of "foreign" music you are allowed to play on radio stations (to fight against the evil english language), laws that prevent TV channels from playing films on friday or saturday evening (to protect those poor cinemas), laws that govern the number of pharmacies by number of inhabitants and disallow ownership of multiple pharmacies or ownership by non-pharmacists (to protect them against the great evil that is competition)...
- majewsky 9y ago> laws that govern the number of pharmacies by number of inhabitants and disallow ownership of multiple pharmacies or ownership by non-pharmacists While that seems a bit over the top, I find the part where it must be owned by a pharmacist quite reasonable. It's the same in Germany.