Announced on September 3, 2020, the €2 billion component of France Relance pour la Culture aims to support the various cultural sectors in their recovery and structuring, in a context where the health crisis has weakened the economic models of the actors.
This support aims to support heritage in the territories, to promote the resumption of the live show and the reconquest of our creative model, while consolidating the major cultural economic sectors, and thus, to prepare for the future and to face the challenges of digital and ecological transition.
In total, 67% of the companies benefiting are SMEs and 10% of the loans are going to rural areas, with Culture making a strong contribution to the overall dynamism of activity.
Over the first eight months of 2021, €793 million was committed, representing 65% of the budget appropriations made available this year and nearly 50% of the total appropriations allocated for the entire French Relance component operated by the Ministry of Culture.
The year 2021 should make it possible to deploy two-thirds of the resources planned for the recovery, and continue in early 2022, ensuring a massive, continuous and territorialized recovery of Culture.
1 - A stimulus by and for wealth: €614 million in total, €473 million from 2021, of which €345 million have already been committed to date.
Heritage is an essential element in terms of our country’s economic development, attractiveness and international influence. With massive support for heritage restoration, the recovery plan has created an unprecedented dynamic to enhance France’s fine crafts and know-how.
With €80 million, the “cathedral plan” has made it possible to launch or accelerate 52 operations, 39 of which were the subject of a notification of works contracts at the end of August 2021.
France Relance also allows the restoration of historic monuments belonging to municipalities and private owners (37 operations, 32 of which have already been the subject of a contract notification)but also to renovate heritage facilities essential to the territories. A total of €56.8 million has already been committed by the Regional Directorates for Cultural Affairs (DRAC).
The recovery plan will also accelerate the restoration of national monuments presented by the Centre des monuments nationaux (CMN) throughout the country (€40 million). The CMN has already committed €18 million to this envelope. Of the 15 monuments concerned, 12 have already been the subject of a contract notification.
Finally, the recovery plan makes it possible to fully implement the restoration and enhancement project of the Villers-Cotterêts castle (€100 million). Of this operation, €82 million has already been committed to date.
2 - The reconquest of our artistic creation and distribution model: €426 million in total, €313 million from 2021, of which €150 million have already been committed to date.
€80 million (of which €53 million in 2021) from the recovery plan will support subsidized performing arts structures in the regions (labelled institutions and networks of theatre, dance, street arts and circus, but also ensembles, operas, orchestras and festivals in the territories). Of this total, €20 million (of which €10 million in 2021) is allocated to a specific fund dedicated to the ecological transition. Of the €53 million set up, the DRAC have already committed more than €30 million to the benefit of more than 500 structures.
France Relance also aims to strongly support the music industry (shows and concerts, recorded music, authors and publishers of music). At the end of August, the Centre National de la Musique (CNM) committed around half of the appropriations delegated at this stage (€120 million out of a total of €175 million in 2021) to 900 beneficiary companies.
3 - A specific effort to support artistic employment, revitalize young creation and modernise the network of cultural higher education institutions: a total of €113 million, €83 million in 2021, of which nearly half have already been committed to date.
A program to support the design and implementation of artistic projects, which will pay particular attention to young creators (visual arts, music, performing arts, writing, design and applied arts), was launched. It aims to give a new impetus to creation in all disciplines (crafts, performing arts, music, literature, visual arts, etc.). Endowed with €30 million, including €20 million in 2021, this program is primarily dedicated to young creators, to support them in a context that has particularly weakened the beginning of their artistic career and their professional integration after leaving school. The call for expressions of interest “New Worlds” was open from June 28 to August 22, 2021. Project notification is scheduled for the end of September.
France Relance also aims to support the modernization of the cultural higher education network, both through an unprecedented plan to renovate school buildings and a major investment in digital education: €20m of appropriations have already been committed for these operations.
4 - Consolidation and modernisation of the press, book, cinema and audiovisual sectors: a total of €428 million, of which nearly €270 million have already been committed.
At the end of August, the Centre national du cinéma (CNC) committed 92% of the French Relance envelope for the cinema sector, to the benefit of 3,762 beneficiaries (exhibitors, producers, distributors, authors, etc.). Similarly, the public media, which play a crucial role in balancing the creative ecosystem, have implemented the exceptional resources allocated (€65 million in 2021).
The recovery plan also contributes to the press sector plan, and €18.5 million in loans have already been committed for the benefit of 1,221 companies (publishers and press broadcasters in particular).
Finally, as part of the book sector plan, €3 million in stimulus funding has already been paid out to 176 bookshops as part of the support package for the modernization of bookshops. The National Book Centre (CNL) will consume the book acquisition support envelope for public libraries faster than expected, with €7 million committed as of 2021. And concerning the strengthening of the global decentralization grant (DGD) allocated to libraries, all of the €15 million open for 2021 were delegated to the communities during the summer of 2021.
5 - A strategy for the future for all cultural and creative industries: €19 million in budget appropriations and €400 million under the AIP4.
With €19 million, France Relance is able to meet the immediate challenges of the cultural and creative industries: registration in the territories with the cultural and creative neighbourhoods »; visibility in the digital environment of French-language content; access to bank financing through the strengthening of the Institut pour le financement du cinéma et des industries culturelles (IFCIC) guarantee intervention capacities. All of these actions took place in 2021 and will continue into 2022.
Beyond these means, the Ministry of Culture carries out a comprehensive strategy aimed at the short and medium term to accelerate the digital transition of cultural and creative industries (CCI) and strengthen their place in the global digital economy. Developed within the framework of the States General of the Cultural and Creative Industries, launched by the President of the Republic in 2019, this strategy has an envelope of 400 M€ within the framework of the 4th Investment plan for the future.
In this context, 6 stimulus packages have been opened to date, representing more than €100 million of funds mobilized, or a quarter of the total appropriations allocated. They will:
- support breakthrough innovations developed by innovative start-ups (I-Nov assistance for a total envelope of €36 million),
- increase the volume of participatory loans granted by the IFCIC (Innovation Loan Fund with the release of €25 million out of a total planned envelope of €50 million),
- to accompany the digital transition of live entertainment, heritage and architecture (calls for projects “augmented experience of live entertainment” and “digitization of heritage and architecture”),
- develop new marketing solutions (call for innovative ticketing expressions of interest),
- and support the ecological transition of the ICC sector through innovation (call for green alternatives projects).
Each of these last four calls has an envelope of €10 million, or €40 million in total.