This lovely infographic made by Raffles Paris Hotels provides a nice introduction to French cinema. Not only has France produced some of the world’s greatest filmmakers, they invented cinema as we know it. They patented the first cinématographie and hosted private and public film screenings before anyone else.
The graphic also includes a list of landmark French films over the last century, but the most fascinating section is on the country’s rich film culture. There are currently 302 cinemas in Paris alone (compared to 117 in New York City) and the city is host to 190 film festivals. This is the kind of cultural landscape you get when arts funding is generously supported by the government, though in these times of austerity, let’s hope that support remains.
There’s also some great info on the country’s historic cinemas including the Cinémathèque Française (home to one of the largest archives of film in the world) and The Eden Theater (the world’s oldest public cinema). Check it all out below and learn a little something along the way. [Shortlist]
