Thanks to its involvement in film production and restoration, BNP Paribas is both a direct and indirect participant in financing a number of films.

Financing production: “The bank for film”

A major supporter of the film industry in France, BNP Paribas has contributed to financing independent French film production for more than 20 years through its Audiovisual branch. “Our activities include financing productions, and more broadly financing the preparation, filming and post-production costs for feature films, as well as for fiction, documentary and animated films,” says Xavier Rodriguez, director of the Audiovisual branch.

BNL is active at every stage of the Italian film industry: financing production, advances on contracts agreed between the production company and the film’s director, financing distribution and export as well as financing technical industries and theatres (cinema construction and renovation).

BNP Paribas Fortis offers investments in audiovisual projects (tax shelters) through the Fortis Film Fund. The films financed through these mechanisms are selected by specialists, based on rigorous criteria (project, risk, return, etc.). The Fortis Film Fund is the only fund of its kind in Belgium.

 

Arthur

Since 2005, BNP Paribas has been one of the leading official partners for Luc Besson’s animated films: “Arthur and the Invisibles” and “Arthur and the Revenge of Maltazard”.
The originality of BNP Paribas’s involvement lay in its decision to partner with an emerging film hero, who it supported from his first steps and through his subsequent growth, rather than partnering with a symbolic figure or established celebrity.

In 2006 and 2009, this partnership allowed BNP Paribas to develop a point-of-sale marketing campaign for the Christmas and New Year period that associated the character of Arthur with its product offer for the youth market.

This approach also enabled the bank, which has a significant export client base, to support an artistic project that showcased an exceptional French success on a global scale.

The partnership with Arthur is part of the Group’s ongoing efforts to become the bank of choice for young people.