A free monthly review of French news & trends VOL. 09.04 MAY 24 French Finance Minister in the Limelight Finance ministers and officials from around the world congregated in Washington, D.C., for French finance minister the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings during the weekend of April 25. During the appeared on The Daily meetings, the finance ministers discussed the state of the global economy, about which Show with Jon Stewart, French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde reflected that "we reached a level of stabilization where she expressed in the world recession." France's view of the In addition to the Spring Meetings,representatives from the leading industrialized coun- economic crisis in a tries also met during the Group of Seven (G-7) summit. Minister Lagarde met US Treasury cordial and light-heart- Secretary Timothy Geithner and their counterparts from Britain, Canada, Germany,Italy, ed exchange with the and Japan. They announced that the worst of the financial recession may be over,and while American comedian. recovery is not completely secure, their aim is to assure a stable base for economic revival Mr. Stewart comment- © Comedy Central through sound financial institutions and systems worldwide. ed on the beauty of the Minister Lagarde gives Jon Stewart a beret. The French minister also joined the Finance Ministers' G-20 meeting,where top finance French language, and officials recalled the concrete objectives set by the Group’s London summit earlier last month noted that if the crisis were taking place in French, there would not be as much concern (see NFF 09.03). The weekend's main goal: to get banks worldwide lending again, about because the minister’s language is so "beautiful." Fueling the convivial interaction, Mrs. which Lagarde asserted, "Implementation is the priority." Lagarde gave Jon Stewart a beret in a comedic gesture — which he fully embraced, and Prior to her appointment as finance minister, Mrs. Lagarde lived in the U.S. serving proudly sported the iconic French symbol as the two posed for photos. Before leaving as the chairman of the international law firm Baker & McKenzie. Confident with her the nation's capital, the French minister was also a guest speaker on The Charlie Rose level of fluency in English, she shared her insights with the American media. The Show and GPS with Fareed Zakaria. Vanity Fair and Bloomberg Bring Top Politicians and Hollywood Glitz to the French Residence Washington, D.C., was abuzz with enjoyed the glittering atmosphere in the company of their French colleagues. "firsts" the second weekend of May as Rahm Emanuel, David Axelrod, Jon Favreau, Peter Orszag and many more White President Obama, accompanied by House top advisors or cabinet members such as Larry Summers and Eric Holder con- the First Lady, delivered his first versed with actors Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, Natalie Portman, Glenn Close, address to the White House Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Owen Wilson, Rashida Jones, Elizabeth Banks, Eva Longoria, Correspondents Association at their Amy Poehler, Jon Bon Jovi, Ed Westwick, Ludacris, Denis Leary, and media persons annual dinner. Also for the first time, such as Katie Couric, David Gregory, David Brooks, David Carr, Steve Kroft, Lara Vanity Fair and Bloomberg hosted Logan, John King and Chris Matthews. their "joint" after-party at the French The "soirée," which was considered the most exclusive in town with only 200 guests, Ambassador's residence, bringing was an occasion for officials to talk about their activities, for celebrities to engage in pol- together the worlds of glamour and itics, and for journalists to interact with famous personalities — enabling a "behind-the- politics with panache. From 11 p.m. camera" glimpse into their insights on myriad topics. In an elegant, yet relaxing setting, © Justin Bishop to 3 a.m., Hollywood stars, promi- connecting seemed all the more conducive that the stars had somewhat laid down their Natalie Portman and Julia Louis- nent figures of the Administration, guard: from Demi Moore discussing political activism with some Washingtonians, to Dreyfus arrive at the reception. and journalists mingled and Rhys Meyers and Owen Wilson, warmly greeting all the ladies in the place. Haiti Donors' Conference Assembles International Dignitaries French Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Human Rights The French secretary also INSIDE Rama Yade visited Washington, D.C., on April 14 to attend the asserted that the promised aid Haiti Donors' Conference. The event took place at the Inter- should "allow [Haiti] to pave 2 Current Events American Development Bank (IDB) and was co-sponsored by the road to a deserved eco- Louvre Pyramid Turns 20 © Thomas Rottcher the Haitian government and the IDB.The global financial cri- nomic development." 3 France & America sis has exacerbated the state of the economy in Haiti, stirring up Among the participants Americans in Paris unrest over food shortages and prices, and the of goal the con- also attending the Haiti Donor's ference was to align the international community's solidarity for Conference were Secretary of 4 In Depth the country. State Hillary Rodham Clinton, France Combats Piracy Secretary Yade encouraged worldwide support for "the Secretary Yade addresses Haitian Prime Minister Michele 5 Business & Tech Haitian government's economic recovery plan, a two-year pro- audience members at the IDB. Pierre-Louis, United Nations French Animated Films gram aimed at generating 150,000 jobs." She announced that Secretary-General Ban Ki- 6 Society her country would increase its aid to Haiti to 30 million euros, more than double the moon, and International Monetary Fund Kosher Food with Twist amount of what it was two years ago. "This assistance will finance education and infra- Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn. structure projects," the French secretary stated. Recalling the historical and cultural links Participants added that another goal of the 7 Culture between the two countries, Mrs.Yade underscored the relationship that France and Haiti conference is to promote investments in the Fête des Fromages continue to enjoy at both a political level as well as "the geographic proximity with the infrastructure and manufacturing sectors of 8 France in America French departments of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, and Martinique, and the language." the Haitian economy. Brown Honors Césaire En bref [ Current Events ] ILE-DE-FRANCE IS MOST DYNAMIC METROPOLITAN AREA Despite the current economic crisis, Ile-de- A Pointed Anniversary of the Louvre’s Pyramid France has continued to be one of the connection on to the glass struc- most prosperous and dynamic regions in ture and the surrounding classical Europe, according to recent studies. The façades of the former royal palace. region had the largest number of jobs In addition, I.M. Pei revisited the created last year out of 15 of the biggest museum with other contemporary European metropolitan areas, including, architects to host a symposium London, Dublin, and Barcelona. Ile-de- describing the challenges of suc- France has also tallied the second-largest cessfully incorporating classical number of foreign enterprises in Europe. and contemporary design. According to Fortune 500 Magazine, Completed in April 1989, the Paris is home to the headquarters of 25 interlaced steel structure sheathed Fortune 500 companies. In 2008, a in reflective glass opens into a spa- PricewaterhouseCoopers study found cious underground lobby before that Paris had the fifth-largest gross met- ascending into the museum's mul- ropolitan product in the world. An annu- tiple galleries — an entrance tech- al study by Ernst & Young notes that nique that has since been replicat- despite the difficult times, Ile-de-France is © Photo F. Eberhardt ed elsewhere, including the "in a dynamic [period] of growth." Designed by Chinese architect I.M. Pei, the glass pyramid in front of the Museum of Science and Industry Louvre museum celebrated its 20th anniversary. in Chicago. ALL THE WORLD'S KNOWLEDGE Since its construction, the The Louvre museum in Paris began welcoming art transparent glass structure has become a landmark of patrons from under a grand glass pyramid 20 years ago Paris as well as a topic of urban legends and pop fiction. last month. Designed by Chinese architect I.M. Pei, the For example, during the pyramid's construction, some Louvre Pyramid was commissioned by then-President newspapers suggested a dark symbolism behind the struc- François Mitterrand to help greet the enormous amount ture, claiming that exactly 666 glass panels were used. of visitors who come daily to view the extensive collection While in truth the Louvre states that 673 panels cover the of antiquities as well as fine and decorative arts. pyramid, this legend is believed to have helped fuel the To celebrate the 20th anniversary, American artist plot of the best-selling novel and later blockbuster movie Jenny Holzer projected poetic texts describing human "The Da Vinci Code." The United Nations unveiled last month Cannes Film Festival: Reviews and Regards on the Riviera its World Digital Library at the Paris head- quarters of its U.N. Educational, Scientific The Cannes Film Festival is one of the oldest and most and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), prestigious international film festivals. For the 62nd making accessible digitalized copies of his- time, the festival combined glamorous movie stars and toric documents to the world over. The groundbreaking filmmakers for a 12-day celebration of fruition of an idea started four years ago cinema on France's Riviera from May 14 to 25. by Librarian of Congress James H. Disney-Pixar's production "UP" featured the work Billington, the intellectual center started of some French artists and opened the festival; the first with approximately 1,200 documents in time an animated film presented in three-dimensions Arabic, Chinese, English, French, was screened at the opening gala. Other highlighted Portuguese, Spanish, and Russian, but films during the festival included: "Taking Woodstock" has room to house thousands more.