A researcher from BBC Radio called yesterday to ask me about Frédéric Mitterrand's inquiry into French TV drama. Was it a serious story? Should they run a piece on it? «Serious» like the Japanese nuclear disaster? No. But important – yes.
Mitterrand says the quality of French TV drama is not high enough, and I agree with him. Sure, there are exceptions – I enjoyed Braquo, for instance, the down-and-dirty crime drama written and directed by Olivier Marchal. And Maison close is cheeky fun, too. But generally, French television is dominated by badly dubbed American TV series – which everyone I know either downloads or buys on DVD in VO.
There are suggestions that France lacks serious production companies like HBO (True Blood, Treme) and AMC (Mad Men). Perhaps government spending should be focused on developing production? Wrong. The real problem is the writing. Money should be spent training, encouraging and paying scriptwriters – possible the most under-appreciated group ever to put pen to paper.
What makes Mad Men and The Wire so great? The writing. Who was responsible for the golden age of French cinema? Michel Audiard – a writer. France needs a screenwriting school and government funding ensuring that screenwriting is a profession that young people will dream of entering. Every house – even Dr House – needs a solid foundation.
