Emmanuel Macron warns of the danger of the “flood of images” for the future of cinema

During the first Light Summit, organized this Monday in Saint-Paul-de-Vence with South Korea, the President of the Republic called on the great cinema nations to unite to defend creation in the face of artificial intelligence, platforms and our frenzied consumption of images.

Emmanuel Macron wants to save cinema from our addiction to images.

During his opening speech at the Lumière Summit, organized Monday in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, the President of the Republic called for international mobilization to protect the future of cinema and, more broadly, of artistic creation.

For him, the issue goes far beyond that of a cultural industry. “Our identities are stories”he declared, emphasizing our ability to tell stories that tell who we are, explain our world and reach audiences from different backgrounds. The French president also defended the numerous initiatives announced during this summit, believing that they participated in the preservation of the culture and heritage of countries around the world.

But it was when he looked at our relationship with images that Macron was most alarmist. In the age of social networks and endless scrolling of videos, according to him, we have never been so exposed to images… at the risk of no longer really looking at them.

“This is the paradox of our environment. We have never looked at so many images. But we run the risk of no longer seeing anything“, he said.

The head of state thus denounces a permanent flow of content designed to provoke an immediate reaction, a click, a “like”, and increasingly capture our attention. “There is a risk that this constant flow will digest everything, devour everything while capturing our attention”he warned.

A phenomenon which represents, according to him, a direct threat to artists and filmmakers. This new economy of attention is disrupting both “creativity, the ability to find an audience and the ability to think”. And Macron summed up: “Our attention is an economic resource.”

Macron wants to “protect those who create”

This speech follows on from a message published by Emmanuel Macron on his X account before the summit. The president recalled that, 130 years after the birth of cinema in France, cinema, series, animation and video games have become much more than simple industries: “common goods that shape our imaginations and connect us across borders”.

He talked about the upheavals caused by artificial intelligence, platforms, new financing models and this famous “unprecedented flood of images” in which new generations grow up.

Faced with these challenges which transcend national borders, Macron believes that no country can act alone. France and South Korea, two great creative nations, brought together creators, producers, broadcasters, platforms, technological players and political leaders in Saint-Paul-de-Vence.

The stated objective is to create new alliances between creators and technologies, public and private actors, cinema, television, platforms and video games, so that this new image revolution makes it possible to open up new possibilities without standardizing imaginations.

“Create. Protect those who create. Circulate works and ideas. Give new generations the keys to understanding and inventing.” This, according to Macron, is the challenge that now awaits the world of images.