cuts a decorous and professorial figure, though the two framed posters of “Scarface” and “The Godfather” that decorate his office walls offer a slightly better insight into the chairman’s inner passions. “As a payTV player, our main objective is not to broadcast content to the widest possible audience in order to lure to advertizers, nor to aim for consensus. We want to inspire passion and fervor, because reactions of ‘not bad’ do not encourage subscriptions.
Further afield, Canal+ has seen youth numbers swell, boasting 8 million African subscribers with a median age of 25. Earlier this year, Canal+ upped its ante in the Johannesburg-headquartered MultiChoice to 31.7%, raising questions of a possible takeover should the broadcaster reach the 35% threshold. Whatever may come, Saada still factors in MultiChoice’s 22 million users as part of the Canal+ Group’s medium-term ambitions to a notch above 50 million global customers.
On the silver screen, Canal+ Group remains a foundation of the local industry, pledging an investment of €600 million in French and European films between 2022 and 2024. In recent years, the group has increased its support of female directors, with Canal+ currently earmarking 25% of all pre-buys for female-fronted projects.
“We aim for international sales to represent 50% of a given film’s budget,” Saada explains. “Projects with a proposed budget of €10 million must be able to clear €5 million in sales. And if the international teams only anticipate €3 million, we’ll adjust the budget accordingly. Once again, we don’t want to be dependent on any one market.”
After premiering at the Venice Film Festival earlier this fall, the Canal+ original “Of Money and Blood” marks “Lost Illusions” director Xavier Giannoli’s first scripted drama, bringing together a powerhouse cast that includes Vincent Lindon , Niels Schneider and Olga Kurylenko . The 12-part docudrama tells the true story of one of the biggest financial swindles of the 21st century.
Finally, Studiocanal will roll out season three of “The Adventures of Paddington,” a CG-animated, preschool-targeting extension of the “Paddington” franchise.