Festival workers: from precariousness to intermittence?

The ‘Sous les écrans, la dèche’ collective of precarious film festival workers was formed in March 2020, following the announcement of the unemployment insurance reforms.
It brings together workers at film festivals (projectionists, programmers, stage managers, subtitlers, those in charge of volunteers, coordination, ticketing, welcoming guests or communications, etc.).

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The new method of calculating their compensation dramatically reduces the amount of unemployment benefit they receive, leaving many in such a precarious position that they are forced to give up their profession. Because they do not have access to the intermittent entertainment scheme, they can no longer survive between two contracts. Exchanges within the collective also highlight the total lack of structure in a sector where working conditions are not governed by any rules.
For 3 years, the members have been constantly alerting festival directors and public authorities. They were politely listened to, but no concrete decisions were taken.

At the Cannes 2024 Festival, the mobilisation took on a new dimension, with a call for strike action and a number of hard-hitting actions that were widely publicised. Aware of the threat of a haemorrhage of know-how due to the inability to retain experienced employees, management finally decided to support the demands of festival workers.

The public authorities are finally taking up the issue: at the end of May, the Ministries of Culture and Labour appointed a senior civil servant to initiate and facilitate dialogue between the social partners. The aim is for film festivals to be included in a collective agreement that will eventually enable the majority of their employees to benefit from the intermittent work scheme.

After 6 months of negotiations, it’s now a done deal! At the end of December, the collective agreement included a specific appendix for film and audiovisual festivals, which will come into force in April 2025. From that date, all festivals will have to apply it.

This is a victory, but it is only the first step: for the moment, this agreement does not allow employees to benefit from the intermittence scheme. What’s still missing is the signature of a ministerial decree and the inclusion by Unédic of the new occupations eligible for intermittence in annexes 8 and 10 of the unemployment insurance scheme.
To date we have not been given a date, and our main demand, intermittence, has not yet been achieved. Precariousness remains.

Festival workers therefore remain vigilant and determined, and in the weeks and months to come they will not rule out new mobilisations, with the support of the unions and, we hope, festival management who are now aware of the issues at stake.

Moderated by : 
Chloé Folens
— Researcher

Speakers:
Jérémy Vachet 
— Sociologist, University of Leeds, Associate Professor, Audencia (Nantes)
Christophe Pauly
— National Secretary of the CFDT Communication, Consultancy and Culture Federation
Sébastien de Fonseca
— Managing Director, Côté Court et member of Carrefour des festivals

and members of the collective Sous les écrans, la dèche

Other speakers are likely to complete the guest list.

Accessible to French speakers only