Vivendi and CANAL+ are stepping up their role as a major player in the financing and development of the French and international movie industry, in which it already invests close to €800 million per year.

Vivendi will take a 30% stake in Mars Films, a French leader in the production and distribution of motion pictures.

Didier Lupfer, the CANAL+ Group EVP in charge of Cinema, is also appointed Chairman of the CANAL+ Group affiliate STUDIOCANAL, the leading European movie studio.

Stéphane Célérier, Chairman of Mars Films, is also appointed Vice-Chairman of STUDIOCANAL. He will chair a monthly development committee with film opinion leaders.

In addition to the recent agreements with the French movie industry, Vivendi intends, with CANAL+, to step up its commitment to cinema, in particular to help the emergence of new talents.

CANAL+ Group will finance and implement a number of writing workshops in order to bring out new forms of storytelling and new writers.

This initiative follows the recent announcement of a long-term partnership with the Cinémathèque de Paris, of which Vivendi has become a major player along with CANAL+.

CANAL+ would like to thank warmly Olivier Courson, who is leaving the Group to pursue an entrepreneurial project, for helping to make STUDIOCANAL the leading European studio.

Jean-Christophe Thiery, Chairman of the CANAL+ Group Management Board, stated: “We are delighted to partner with Mars Films, which will make a great addition to the Group’s already strong movie operations. CANAL+ is the number one support of the French movie industry, and STUDIOCANAL is a major player in Europe. This operation is part of our plan to aggressively invest in content, particularly movies that are more than ever at the core of our strategy. ”

Maxime Saada, CEO of the CANAL+ Group, stated: “CANAL+ and STUDIOCANAL welcome the opportunity to combine their already widely recognized know-how in movies with the experience and expertise of Stéphane Célérier. Under his leadership, Mars has become a key distributor of some of the greatest names in cinema, including Woody Allen, as well as critically-acclaimed and popular movies (Polisse, Des Hommes et des dieux, 12 Years a Slave, Potiche, etc.). Mars recently and successfully launched into production with La Famille Bélier. Having him among us will be a real asset. “