French cinema refuses to surrender its imagination to the Bolloré empire While flashes pop on the Croisette, another scene -far less glamorous- is playing out behind the curtains
Beneath the glitz of the Cannes Film Festival’s opening lies a reality darker than any cinema hall. The launch of the fortnight was marked by a bold strike: 600 film professionals signing a manifesto against the growing influence of the far-right within their ranks. The "Zapper Bolloré" collective, behind the op-ed published in Libération, is taking direct aim at the "Bolloré system," accusing it of cannibalizing the entire film industry -from creation to distribution. As Vivendi prepares to seize control of UGC following its takeover of StudioCanal, French cinema is sounding the alarm: the script for a reactionary hegemony is already in production.
Party on the Croisette, Expansion in the Empire
The fortnight has just begun with its usual rituals: screenings, meticulously timed red carpet walks, and after-parties that stretch until dawn. But behind this postcard-perfect image, the French audiovisual landscape is undergoing a brutal facelift. After losing the Festival’s broadcasting rights to France Télévisions, Vincent Bolloré seems determined to buy up the rest of the scenery.
His latest conquest: the UGC Group. After snapping up a 34% stake, the Bolloré Group is no longer hiding its appetite for France’s third-largest cinema chain, aiming for 100% ownership by 2028. Add to this Vivendi’s stranglehold on Canal+ and its subsidiary StudioCanal (Europe’s leading production house), and the reality is chilling: from the first draft of a script to the red velvet seat of the spectator, the billionaire is locking down the entire chain.
The "Civilizational Project"
In a sharp op-ed published by Libération, the "Zapper Bolloré" collective is ringing the alarm. For these 600 signatories, this isn't just entertainment business; it’s an ideological offensive:
"Behind his businessman’s suit, the billionaire does not hide the fact that he is leading a reactionary, far-right 'civilizational project.' While the influence on film content has remained discreet so far, we are under no illusions: it won't last."
The precedent set in the publishing world serves as a grim warning. The takeover of Hachette triggered an internal hemorrhage, symbolized by the resignation of Olivier Nora at Grasset, seen by many as the last bastion before the flood. Today, authors like Virginie Despentes or Bernard-Henri Lévy refuse to have their names associated with the empire, while the Fayard publishing house, now under tutelage, has transformed into a promotional machine for far-right figures like Jordan Bardella or Philippe de Villiers.
600 Names Shouting "Cut!"
The collective doesn't pull any punches, denouncing a "fascist takeover of the collective imagination." This manifesto is more than a cry from the heart; it is a categorical refusal to depend on the money of a man whose networks (led by CNews) fuel the fires of hatred.
Among the signatories are the heavyweights of the Seventh Art: Juliette Binoche, Jean-Pascal Zadi, Swann Arlaud or Adèle Haenel.
Actors, directors, but also script supervisors and programmers... the entire body of the film industry is rising up against this "Bolloré-ization" of the mind. In Cannes, French cinema is reminding the world that it still knows how to bite—even when someone tries to buy its kennel.
