DGA delegation recently attended the Franco American Cultural Fund's (FACF) Board meeting in Paris.
Financed through levies on blank tapes imposed by French copyright law, the Fund's objective is to foster a professional and cultural exchange between French and American filmmakers. The Fund is responsible for the Franco-American training program taking place every summer in France; the annual City of Lights, City of Angels French Film Festival held in April at the DGA Theatres in Los Angeles; and "Rencontres Cinematographiques de Beaune" (Beaune Cinema Encounters), a series of meetings between French, European, and U.S. directors.
Representing the DGA at the meeting and on the Fund's Advisory Board were DGA Secretary-Treasurer Gil Cates, director Michael Mann and DGA National Executive Director Jay D. Roth. Cates spoke at the meeting then participated in a panel on vertical integration in the United States and its negative impact on creativity and diversity.
