France doubles Oscar campaign aid and names liaison for Minotaur push
France will double the money it puts behind its Oscar campaigns and has hired a full-time go-between for Hollywood's awards season. The strategy was unveiled on Monday, 5 October, at the CNC, France's state film organisation, in Paris during its exports conference, according to Variety.
The plan centres on cash and coordination. The CNC will double the financial aid granted to Oscar campaigns. It has created a new Academy Awards liaison post and appointed Sébastien Cauchon to fill it. His first job will be to lead the campaign for "Minotaur."
Cauchon runs the Paris-based consultancy Cinema Collectors. He worked on the Oscar-winning campaign for Natalie Musteata and Alexandre Singh's short "Two People Exchanging Saliva." The CNC describes him as an expert on Oscar campaigns including "The Father" and "The Substance," according to CNC.
His first test is immediate. Andrey Zvyagintsev's "Minotaur," winner of the Grand Prize at Cannes, has been chosen as France's entry for this year's Oscars. The drought is long. France has not won the international feature prize, the Academy's award for films made largely outside the United States, since Régis Wargnier's "Indochine" in 1993.
The announcement came during the Assises de l'export de la création cinématographique et audiovisuelle, the CNC's review of how French film and television programmes sell abroad. CNC president Gaëtan Bruel said France remained in 2025 the third most represented country after the U.S. and U.K. for programmes shown on linear TV worldwide, meaning traditional broadcast channels.
Export sales tell a harder story. A joint study by the CNC and Unifrance put total French content exports at €282.7 million in 2025, according to Senal News. Television sales fell 21.6% to €164.3 million ($192.2 million), their lowest level in a decade, according to Variety. Animation sales dropped 30.3% to €32.2 million worldwide in 2025, a second straight yearly fall, according to Cartoon Brew.
For fans, this means France wants to be louder in Los Angeles as well as in Cannes. Extra funding pays for screenings, travel and advertising during awards season. One named contact gives producers and directors a clear starting point. It is a practical change with a visible goal.
