The Hauts-de-France region has become a major territory for the cultural and creative industries (CCI). It’s also a reality for digital creation, with Pictanovo’s involvement in the video game and new writing sectors, Le Fresnoy’s dynamism as a venue for events and learning, and Plaine Images’ economic role. Interview with Emmanuel Delamarre, director of the incubator and now “creative district” being restructured with the European Metropolis of Lille as an enhanced metropolitan site of excellence, dedicated to audiovisual, video game, music, design and entertainment production. Welcome to EuraCreative by Plaine Images in 2025.
Plaine Images, an industrial key-player in the Hauts-de-France region
Emmanuel Delamarre – Plaine Images was originally built around an emblematic site, the Imaginarium, and what was already known as the creative industries – more specifically, those focused on images. We have launched a regional dynamic with a business incubator and gas pedal (+ 60 projects supported by 2023), and long-term accommodation programs. We have also set up schools within Plaine Images, research centers and associated services (sound studios, post-production, etc.). Today, our 5-hectare site is home to 150 companies and 2,000 people.
E. D. – Cultural and creative industries is a vocabulary used by institutions to frame all our professions. For Plaine Images, it’s important to look at this from an industrial angle: behind screens, films and video games, there are economies, jobs and professions. And today, capital is involved, technologies are being developed… Our support is at the heart of these audiovisual and video game issues, with local dynamics. Take Ankama, for example, whose success in animation and gaming needs no introduction (they’ve just celebrated the 20th anniversary of DOFUS!). Pictanovo‘s support is also very important for developing CCIs in the region, producing works (including new writing), and promoting local talent – whether authors or specialized studios, particularly in sound.
E. D. – Since 2019, we’ve also been focusing on the music industry, from instrument manufacturers to music design, post-production, broadcasting and streaming, and more. Here, too, we are keen to identify the issues facing the industry and support the economic development of the structures involved. Digital technology has already had an impact on the music industry for a long time, and there are some very stimulating projects. I could even talk about the challenges of karaoke projects and the management of associated rights!
EuraCreative, or Plaine Images 2.0 ?
E. D. – Lille is a metropolis that brings us a lot; it’s a driving force of international stature, with a revitalized economic fabric. Lille was European Capital of Culture in 2004, and Design Capital in 2020. We’re very much involved in creative issues, even for traditional industries. It’s in this same spirit that the metropolis is today announcing EuraCreative. This project represents a new local strategy for the cultural and creative industries, in conjunction with Plaine Images. CCIs have evolved considerably since our creation, and their definition has become increasingly clear. And to maintain our role as a benchmark, we need to have new ambitions. Without talking about a total revolution, EuraCreative is initiating a new phase in the integration of CCIs with an enhanced Plaine Images. Improving what already exists, and exploring new horizons. Design is one of them. So is innovation in live performance, linking it with our existing skills, from artistic issues to software and technical management, for example.
E. D. – With EuraCreative, we’re determined to further integrate education, training, higher education and research. Plaine Images is already home to the University of Lille and the CNRS, with a “visual sciences and cultures” research center working on capturing emotions and the logic of interaction. Other dimensions deserve to be explored, in innovation and new technologies, intelligence… But we can also work with other universities in France, and even abroad, in line with the objectives of France 2030. This whole research dynamic may eventually involve Plaine Images companies, and we are working to create strong links with players in the creative industries. In this way, we aim to create useful knowledge transfers, with a real transversality between professionals and researchers.
E. D. – EuraCreativeby Plaine Images is also about building bridges with other regions. Obviously, there are issues with our direct neighbors (Grand Est region, etc.). We are fortunate to be at the crossroads of many exchanges and energies, between several major European (or ex-European) countries. And we’re only 45 minutes from Roissy airport! The logic of supporting industries in our own regions means being open to partnerships and projects outside our own region. In the end, everyone benefits.
The role of extended reality (XR) at Plaine Images
E. D. – The subject of impact technologies is one of our main areas of reflection. It’s already a topic for some of our companies, in our discussions with the world of research. For the past three years, we have been offering the PIX event, 3 days of professional meetings to discuss technological innovation at the service of CCIs. XR, generative AI, broadcasting… It’s essential to understand what’s at stake, and to update ourselves on what already exists. And it allows us to see that innovation in the CCI is producing concrete results, with projects that are meeting with audiences.
E. D. – Immersive, or XR, is a hot topic with us, but there are still a lot of questions to be asked about the distribution of works. The enhanced experience offered by VR, AR or MR content is obviously formidable, and has nothing left to prove creatively. But the market takes time to develop, and business models are very fragile, despite the diversity of experiences (particularly in live performance). As far as we’re concerned, it’s on the video game side that good examples are emerging, with titles that are breaking through and licenses that want to make use of these new creative platforms. On the education front, too, we’re seeing good applications of immersive technologies in companies and schools, and we’re also seeing plans to fund them. Industries like Arcelor are obviously already very involved in this area. But to return to the world of culture, a market needs to emerge so that we can accelerate our support for players, studios and creators – whatever immersive, interactive form we can imagine for tomorrow.
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