Bernard Grimaldi
Composer, President of FFACE
Birth of a Federation
FFACE WAS BORN JUST SIX MONTHS AGO and it is far too early
to assess any results. We are still in the very first moments of our
existence but, nevertheless, we were already able, in February in Vienna
for instance, or more recently in Brussels last June, to weigh our strength.
The Vienna Declaration, birth certificate of a unified platform which will
eventually regroup all European music composers and whose FFACE will
naturally become one of the pillars, is the most compelling proof of the
validity and immediate efficiency of our Federation.
The presence of FFACE at the contradictory hearings held in Brussels
by the DG Competition of the European Commission, relative to the
complaint filed by some companies in an effort to dismantle
reciprocity agreements in place between European collecting
societies was more than important. It was essential because it allowed
the Commision to hear the view of the authors themselves.
Down the road, our wish is to be involved and influential in the European
decision process relating to audiovisual and cinematographical musical
creation.
To get there, we must exist, analyze our specific problems, be active in
every instance of decision where national and European cultural policies
are elaborated, initiate discussions and come up with solutions.
The recent attempts in France and in Spain to tear down the very principle
of author rights are there to remind us that we face, if we are not united, a
clear and present danger of witnessing the disappearance of our sole
source of revenues.
To unite is to bring together all film and audiovisual music composers
of Europe and it is the purpose of FFACE.
To unite is also to work together with the larger creative community
of composers, directors, writers, and with the business actors and
structures to which we are closely connected (producers, publishers,
collecting societies) so that we can elaborate the tools and structures
needed to confront the challenges created by the profound and often
brutal transition our societies are going through.