Cozy crime helped French TV exports recover in the latest measurement year, with an increase in overall revenue of €209.6M ($244M). That’s an uptick on the €203.4M posted the previous year but still down on the peak €214.8M posted a year earlier.
The numbers, which are for 2024, are a bellwether for the French biz. The reaction to the latest figures will depend upon in which genre you ply your trade. Broadly – it’s fairly good news in drama as buyers continue to cozy up to light crime series. At the same time, the numbers are troubling in terms of animation.
The figures are presented by Unifrance, the French industry org that promotes French TV and cinema, at its annual TV market, the Rendez-Vous.
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French producers and distributors are doing well with cozy crime, which remains in vogue. Series such as France TV Distribution’s Astrid et Raphaëlle, Gaumont’s L’Art Du Crime, Federation International’s Tropiques Criminels and TF1’s High Intellectual Potential are leading the Gallic charge, the latter being remade for U.S. network ABC. The proportion of overall sales attributed to drama increased.
Worryingly for an internationally-renowned French animation sector, there was a sharp year-on-year decline in terms of export sales. Animation has accounted for about a third of all sales over the past decade, but took just 22% of the total in 2024. Revenue from animation sales has fallen for five consecutive years and toon sales to the U.S. were their lowest since 2008. Unifrance said buyers are increasingly looking to well-known IP when it comes to animation.
During tough times for all European drama producers, it was not surprising to see a sharp spike in the money flowing in from co-production as prodcos and financiers band together to get projects financed. Revenue of €116.2M was up almost 60% year-on-year. There was also a rise in the revenue attributed to presales. They hit €75.4M, more than double that of the previous year, although the 2023 pre-sales number was notable for being so low.
By region, sales of French shows to Western Europe accounted for the largest proportion of the total, followed by multi-territory or global deals. Sales to U.S. buyers tumbled and revenue from sales to the U.S. were/was just 7.9%, the lowest ever recorded.
One discernible trend in the French stats was the concentration of sales among the biggest distributors, especially in the fiction category. It likely speaks to the financial heft and marketing resources required to successfully launch and monetize shows. The top five distribs accounted for 43% off all sales.