Continuing the energy of previous Master Classes and last year’s special three-day symposium on French Film: Arts, Science and Technology at Work for Humanity, the Festival will hold two Master Classes.

Cinéma and the State: France & United States

A lecture by Marc Nicolas, General Director of La Fémis

Friday, March 22 ~ 9:00 – 10:15 a.m. • Free and open to the public

Location : VCU Grace Street Theatre | 934 W. Grace Street · VCU campus
Language information : Master Class Lecture conducted in English

About the participant

General Director of La Fémis since 2002 and president of the European Association of Film Schools (GEECT) since 2006, Marc Nicolas has spent all his professional life working on cultural and film policies. With a background in economy and film studies, he has been instrumental to national film policy in France as counselor to Jack Lang, Minister of Culture (1989-1993) and to the cabinet of Catherine Trauttmann, Minister of Culture (1997-1998). From 1993 to 1997, he served as Head of the Department of Research and Development within the Ministry of Culture (1993-1997). He was in charge of the French National Film Archive and was instrumental to relocation of the Cinémathèque Française (1998-2000) as well as Deputy Director for International Affairs at the CNC (Centre national du cinema et de l’image animée) in 2001.

Under his leadership at La Fémis, the school has grown in many new directions, including the creation of a new master program in distribution and film exhibition; a program for young European producers through a Franco-German curriculum with the Ludwigsburg’s Film School; and numerous exchange agreements with prestigious film schools around the world. Currently, he is developing a new Master program to be launched next September at La Fémis dedicated to the creation of TV series.

Marc Nicolas is the co-author of many collective books on cinema policy and numerous articles in French cinema reviews such as Les Cahiers du cinéma and Positif.