Jean-Michel Arnold, (1938 - September 4, 2019) is General Secretary of the

Cinémathèque Française The Cinémathèque Française (), founded in 1936, is a French non-profit film organization that holds one of the largest archives of film documents and film-related objects in the world. Based in Paris's 12th arrondissement, the archive offers ...

, vice President of UNESCO's IFTC (

International Council for Film Television and Audiovisual Communication The International Council for Film, Television and Audiovisual Communication (ICFT) is the UNESCO advisory body on all matters concerned with film, television and new media. Located at UNESCO HQ's in Paris, France, was founded in UNESCO's 10th se ...

), founder of the Cinéma du Réel, Director of CNRS Image/Media, General Secretary of RIAVS, and President of CAMERA. Without being a filmmaker, Mr. Arnold has been the instigator of some very important events in the world of cinema.

Early life

He was the only child of Christine Brisset, an activist known as the “Pasionaria of the Poor”, with a street named in her honour and her life documented on film. His father died around the time of his birth. At the age of 15, he left his home town of Angers and headed for Paris. There he was befriended by

Henri Langlois Henri Langlois (; 13 November 1914 – 13 January 1977) was a French film archivist and cinephile. A pioneer of film preservation, Langlois was an influential figure in the history of cinema. His film screenings in Paris in the 1950s are often ...

, founder of the Cinémathèque Française, “one of the most important figures in the history of film” who became his mentor and spiritual father. At the instigation of Langlois, he went out to the newly independent Algeria and helped found the Cinémathèque Nationale Algérienne first with Ahmed Hocine and later with Boudjema Karèche and helped organise the “Rencontres des Cinémas du Monde” at the first Panafrican Cultural Festival in 1969 (the second was forty years later in August 2009).

Career

CNRS Image/Média

In 1974 the

CNRS The French National Centre for Scientific Research (french: link=no, Centre national de la recherche scientifique, CNRS) is the French state research organisation and is the largest fundamental science agency in Europe. In 2016, it employed 31,63 ...

(the French National Scientific Research Council) appointed him director of a newly formed audiovisual division “CNRSAV” (initially called Service d'étude de réalisation et de diffusion de documents audio-visuels or SERDDAV) and finally simplified to “CNRS Image/Média” which he headed until 2001 and for which he was awarded “La Medaille de Cristal” for his creativity and innovation. Under his direction it was responsible for the production of hundreds of film productions, TV programs, film expeditions, multimedia packages and seminars dedicated to science and the arts. He created formal links with

La Fémis La Fémis (French: ''École Nationale Supérieure des Métiers de l'Image et du Son''; "National Superior School for the Professions of Image and Sound", formerly known as the '' Institut des hautes études cinématographiques'', IDHEC) is a Fre ...

, The French State Film School whose first President was

Jean-Claude Carrière Jean-Claude Carrière (; 17 September 1931 – 8 February 2021) was a French novelist, screenwriter and actor. He received an Academy Award for best short film for co-writing '' Heureux Anniversaire'' (1963), and was later conferred an Honorary ...

(also President of RIAVS), and with UNESCO's IFTC. In 1977 together with

Jean Rouch Jean Rouch (; 31 May 1917 – 18 February 2004) was a French filmmaker and anthropologist. He is considered one of the founders of cinéma vérité in France. Rouch's practice as a filmmaker, for over 60 years in Africa, was characterized b ...

he founded the Cinéma du Réel

RIAVS Rencontres Internationales de l’Audiovisuel Scientifique

In 1976 he created the Rencontres Internationales de l’Audiovisuel Scientifique (RIAVS) an annual event lasting several weeks during which scientists, artists, movie makers, TV producers and the public meet at the Eiffel Tower and UNESCO to celebrate “a débauche of initiatives, projections, discussions and exhibitions”. As Koïchiro Matsuura, Director General of UNESCO, wrote: “it is a unique initiative supported by UNESCO… which brings together in one place: science, culture, communication and education” There are special screenings of rare cinema items, Symposia (see pictures on right) and the official Festival program, some of which are detailed below: * The International Festival of TV Science Programs This is the core Festival. It started as a means of bringing together two groups who hardly knew each other, on the one hand the scientists working in their laboratories and on the other the media. It has now grown to become an iconic meeting place at the Eiffel Tower for science and the media. More than 300 TV production companies from 66 countries in 5 continents submit TV Science programs for several prizes: namely a) the Grand Prix; b) Prix Special du Jury; c) Prix pour l’Imagerie Scientifique; d) Prix Aventures et Decouvertes; e) Prix Science et Societe; f) Prix Sante; g) Prix Jeunesse; h) Prix du Magazine; and i) Mention Speciale du Jury * Prix Argos This is a prize which is awarded each year to those web sites which show startling originality, unpredictability and the ability to create new affinities across continents * Prix Jules Verne This is a prize which is awarded each year to a TV company not for any individual TV program but for their policy towards their viewing public as expressed by the quality of their TV programs overall * Prix l’Affiche du Monde This is a prize which is awarded each year to the best movie produced by a film school (in cooperation with

CILECT The International Association of Film and Television Schools (French: ''Centre international de liaison des écoles de cinéma et de télévision'', CILECT) is the association of the world's major film and television schools.IFTC and, in coproduction with the French Ministère des Relations Extérieures, it produced a series of movies on “Les peintres cinéastes”. CAMERA is most celebrated for “Le Prix CAMERA” which is awarded each year at UNESCO to * a City * a Foundation * a Film/TV Production Company * a Publisher * a Museum which has shown the most outstanding contribution to Culture and Education As President of CAMERA he also has the responsibility of advising UNESCO with regard to its initiative to select "Creative Cities of Cinema"UNESCO Creative Cities
“Appointed cities are entitled to use UNESCO’s name and logo under the terms and conditions of UNESCO’s graphic charter”.

Cinémathèque Française

He has been associated with the

ever since his first meeting with

at the age of 15. He was elected General Secretary in 1981 and has been consistently re-elected since then, working closely with past Presidents,

Jean-Charles Tacchella Jean-Charles Tacchella (born 23 September 1925) is a French screenwriter and film director. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for his film '' Cousin Cousine'' (1975), which was also nominated for the Academy Awar ...

, and

Claude Berri Claude Berri (; 1 July 1934 – 12 January 2009) was a French film director, writer, producer, actor and distributor. Early life Born Claude Beri Langmann in Paris, Berri was the son of Jewish immigrant parents. His mother, Beila (née Bercu), w ...

and with the current President

Costa-Gavras Costa-Gavras (short for Konstantinos Gavras; el, Κωνσταντίνος Γαβράς; born 12 February 1933) is a Greek-French film director, screenwriter, and producer who lives and works in France. He is known for films with political and s ...

UNESCO

He was elected President of the

(IFTC) at UNESCO in 2000 and is currently its vice President. The IFTC is UNESCO's advisory body on all matters concerned with film, television and new media. It has functioned for over 50 years as an independent NGO in official formal associate relations with UNESCO, based at UNESCO's headquarters in Paris.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arnold, Jean-Michel UNESCO officials French activists French officials of the United Nations 1938 births 2019 deaths