Light Summit Started in France: The Future of Cinema and TV Series is Discussed

The Light Summit on the future of the cinema and TV series industry started in the town of Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France.

At the summit, co-chaired by Macron and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, the changes faced by the cinema and TV series industry will be discussed.

More than 200 people, including names from the cinema, TV series and game industries, from approximately 60 countries are attending the summit.

In his speech at the opening of the summit, Macron reminded that in the 19th century, brothers Louis and Auguste Lumiere projected the first moving images in history on the screen and said, "Beyond a technical innovation, a new way of looking at the world, showing it and telling it had begun." he said.

Saying that French cinema and South Korean TV series shine in the world by transcending borders, Macron said that the films and TV series of these two countries show that a culture can globalize while remaining true to its own essence.

"Cinema and visual animations are going through changes that no one can deny," Macron said. He stated that artificial intelligence and the capture of people's attention by social media platforms are indicative of "a change of era".

Stating that in the current era, visuals are proliferating almost as if there is no end, Macron said, "These visuals are flowing rapidly on our cinema screens, televisions, game consoles and smartphones." he said.

“For the sake of looking at everything, we run the risk of ending up seeing nothing.”

Macron emphasized that this situation affects people's connection with culture, science and art, and pointed out that never in history have people had access to so much information, content and works as today.

"We've never looked at screens this much. But for the sake of looking at everything, we run the risk of ending up seeing nothing." Making his evaluation, Macron stated that social media platforms that drag people to content have an economic model that aims to capture the attention of children and adults and create temporary excitement.

Underlining that this model aims to turn people's attention into money, Macron said, "Today, it is becoming increasingly difficult to spare time for reading in our societies." he said.

Stating that visuals know no boundaries in today's world, Macron called for the understanding of multilateral cooperation to be carried to visual sectors such as cinema and TV series.

Macron noted that they will allocate a joint budget of 1 billion euros for the next 5 years to establish the "Light Partnership" to support the visual sector.