At the 31st Unifrance Rendez-Vous in Le Havre (September 1-5, 2025), Unifrance and CNC unveiled their annual export report for French audiovisual content. While total exports exceeded €200 million for the fourth time in three decades, animation sales declined by 9.9%, falling to €46.1 million in 2024. This reflects a sharp drop in North America, where animation revenues dropped 36.8% year-over-year to €2.7 million—the lowest figure since 2008.
Despite the animation slide, France’s total audiovisual exports (including co-production and pre-sales) rose 3% to €209.6 million, and the combined value of exports, pre-sales, and co-productions hit a record €401.2 million—a nearly 30% year-over-year jump, fueled by large increases in co-production contributions (+58.7%) and foreign pre-sales (+131.2%).
Animation remains France’s second-most exported genre, securing 22% market share in program category exports and a striking 29% share of multi-zone rights sales (worldwide licensing), primarily driven by AVOD platforms where revenues doubled in one year to €16.6 million.
However, the report warns that global buyers—particularly in North America—are increasingly risk-averse, leaning toward well-established franchises. Smaller animation producers and original IPs are finding fewer licensing opportunities, as acquisition negotiations drag and global investment narrows.
Why It Matters for AVGC & Creative Exporters
| Trend | Implication |
|---|---|
| Reliance on major IPs | Platforms and buyers prefer known IPs, posing competitive challenges for new or niche projects. |
| Regional Export Weakness | North America’s steep decline signals a need to diversify discovery portals and partnerships in that market. |
| AVOD & Multi-Zone Growth | Genre-agnostic world-wide licensing and streaming (particularly AVOD) are emerging as stable new revenue models. |
| Scaling Up Co-Production | Strong spikes in co-production finance demonstrate France’s advantage through international collaboration. |
