With:
Sophie Dacbert (moderator), Le Film Français,
Jean-Robert Gibard, CEO Quinta Industries,
Matt Hanson, British producer,
Marin Karmitz, CEO MK2,
Stefan Schneider, director of Armageddon: The Longest Night,
Serge Toubiana, General Manager of the Cinémathèque française.

• What impact has the digital revolution had on the cinema?
Marin Karmitz relativises the consequences of the arrival of digital, even if it engenders lesser production costs, he observes that usually "revolutions" mark deep changes. Without the arrival of new techniques, favouring new ways of sound recording or lighting, the New Wave would not have come to be, for example, in France. Today, despite the arrival of digital, no deep change in either scripting or direction has yet surfaced. What is the interest of digital and which are the real changes which it engenders?

• The digital revolution is only halfway along and can still be "aborted". (Marin Karmitz)
Serge Toubiana minimises in turn the effects of digital on creation and auteur cinema. His mission is to digitise our cinematographic heritage. Digital is an easier means of production and distribution, and does not modify at all either sense or creation.

• A new economic model.
The entrance of digital in motion-picture theatres led to a radical modification of the standard economic model as it lends itself to wide distribution. Jean-Robert Gibard remarks that this new saving must benefit from the support of the Ministry of Culture and the CNC to find a balance. The death of 35mm film represents essentially the end of an economic model. The development of new technologies is only one means, and it is henceforth urgent to understand the ultimate goal of this revolution. According to Jean-Robert Gibard, it's not the blockbuster which is in danger, but the entire motion-picture industry's economy.

• Digital as the bearer of cinematic projects?
With his film, Armageddon: The Longest Night, screened in competition at the Festival des 4 Ecrans, Stefan Schneider underscores the importance of digital in his creation. In his eyes, digital is none other than a tool put in the service of the script, and enables one to make special effects at moderate costs. He distinguishes two phases: formerly, special effects necessarily had to follow editing, while today these stages stand side by side.

• An innovative production system: Web 2.0
The increasing importance of the "community" aspect over the Internet can change the deal. Matt Hanson is the creator of A Swarm of Angels, a community production project for films over the Internet. He wishes to adapt the Web 2.0 process to film production. The system of collaboration over Internet is ingenious and brings together a million participants, as well as a million pounds. To do so, there are three different levels of participation: the creators, the critics and the "crowd" with international profiles. Five phases govern the making of the film and the state of advancement is directly accessible over the Internet. The current risks of the created motion picture market, according to Matt Hanson, have led to "death of the blockbuster". While some fustigate his project, he recalls that there is no hierarchy between the various screens, and instead the goal of a film is first and foremost to be distributed and seen. So it is necessary to find for this the most suitable medium and that's what makes today's new screens so successful.

The forum has brought to light a new problem: digital and creation, a matter of generations?

Université de l'image - 28 September 2007