Laurence Herszberg, founder and general director, announces today the prestigious line-up of guests and speakers to attend the 7th edition of the Lille Dialogues set for the third day of the Series Mania Forum March 27. The much-anticipated day-long international summit Brings together key industry leaders encouraging international cooperation and a joint reflection on the challenges facing the TV industry today.
The 2025 edition will feature panel discussions, plus several keynotes delivered by top industry executives, exploring the crucial role of creativity in the international audiovisual industry. This year’s Lille Dialogues will be devoted to Post Peak TV: Challenging times ahead, including AI, funding, and audience changes.
“After a period of euphoria, the audiovisual industry is now facing three major challenges from our perspective. First, a funding crisis marked by an intense battle to capture advertising budgets. Second, a sociological challenge, linked to this advertising crisis, given today’s younger generations shift to social platforms, and finally, an industrial revolution, driven by the undeniable impact of artificial intelligence,” commented Herszberg. “Thanks to the Lille Dialogues, which continue to be a vital platform to curate insightful discussions, collaborative solutions, and thought-provoking exchange between key leaders within the audiovisual industry, we look forward to delving further into these topics.
The day’s program includes:
KEYNOTES
- Keynote ARTE
Bruno Patino, CEO, Arte
- Keynote France Télévisions
Delphine Ernotte Cunci, CEO, France Télévisions
- Keynote ITV Studios
Ruth Berry, President of International Distribution, ITV Studios
In a fireside chat, Ruth Berry, President, ITV Studios Global Partnerships & Zoo 55 discusses the reasons why the only constant for content owners is change. The need to be where consumers want to watch, share or play is paramount – and that may mean operating several different business models at once – all of equal importance.
- Keynote M6
David Larramendy, Chairman of the management board, M6 Group
- Keynote TF1
Rodolphe Belmer, CEO, TF1 Group
- Keynote Warner Bros. Discovery Gerhard Zeiler, President of International, Warner Bros. Discovery
Gerhard Zeiler, President of International for Warner Bros. Discovery joins Lille Dialogues to share how this iconic media company is navigating generational changes and leveraging opportunities created by industry disruptions. Zeiler will discuss WBD’s strategy to support the ongoing global expansion of Max, WBD’s premium streaming service, while defending and optimizing its networks business, and revitalising its TV, movie, and game studios to reclaim industry leadership.
PANEL DISCUSSIONS
- Welcome Address by Series Mania President Anne Bouverot
- All Eyes on Advertising Budget: What are the impacts on content creation?
- Fast Forward – The AI Revolution: What will our industry look like in five years?
- Deepfake & Algorithms: How should we develop critical thinking in viewers?
- Preserving A Virtuous European Model: The challenges of the 2026 AVMS revision
Among the speakers confirmed on the panels:
- Erik Barmack, CEO, Wild Sheep Content
- Antoine Bayet, Head of Editorial, INA
- Marianne Carpentier, Head of Emerging Technologies, TF1
- Johann Choron, Head of Gen AI for Media & Entertainment, Google EMEA
- Gregory Dray, Co-Founder, Animaj
- Mathilde Fiquet, Secretary General, CEPI
- Susana Gato, President, CEPI
- Amélie Lacourt, Legal Analyst, European Audiovisual Observatory
- Jean-Paul Philippot, Administrateur general de la RTBF, RTBF
- Guillemette Picard, SVP Production Technology – On professional development leave, Ubisoft,
- Grégoire Polad, Managing Director, ACT
- Sally Reynolds, Chief Operating Officer, Media & Learning Association
- Femke Wolting, Showrunner & Co Founder, Submarine
