Film Festival, the French Ministry of Economy and Finance has clarified its position regarding movies backed by sanctioned oligarchs.
The ministry added: “According to the law, the assets of Russian people under European sanctions are not taken but frozen. It means they still own their assets but can’t dispose freely of them . They can be seized only if they try to break the law .”, the drama made by Russian dissident Kirill Serebrennikov before the invasion of Ukraine, is a European co-production whose financiers include Abramovich, as well as French and Swiss entities.
French sales firm Charades told us the company had not been contacted by the ministry but that it would comply with any governmental orders regarding the Russian funding. The firm had no further comment. director Serebrennikov called for sanctions to be lifted against Abramovich whom he described as a patron of the arts.
France last month seized the oligarch’s opulent mansion on the French Riviera as part of European sanctions against the billionaire who originally made his money in the oil sector. The Cap d’Antibes home was one of a dozen French properties seized from him by France in recent weeks in a bid to crack down on Vladimir Putin and his enablers following the invasion.
Wyt