Ladies and Gentlemen,

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There are habits that are better than others and at the very top of that list is the rhythm of our meetings, Madam President.

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In our region, we eventually come to call such habits traditions with everything that implies in terms of long-term support, continuity, and shared commitment.

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However, we do have one issue: the term “Vendarwood” is beginning to feel somewhat outdated when describing the place of the Cultural and Creative Industries in Vendargues.

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I am very pleased to share this morning with you as France Télévisions once again expands its presence in Vendargues  creating additional jobs, increasing the number of sound stages by four units, and expanding the available surface area from 16,000 to 25,000 square meters.

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On this site formerly home to the Bonna-Sabla company nearly twelve hectares have ultimately been designed to host an ecosystem dedicated to the Cultural and Creative Industries, with the V2 studios of France Télévisions as its flagship, further establishing Vendargues and the Montpellier Metropolitan Area as a national benchmark in this field.

The two local authorities did not hesitate for a single moment when it came to investing in support of this project and many others.

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Building height allowances were optimized within the framework of the Local Urban Development Plan (PLUi) to enable the production of new types of series.

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Tomorrow, the BusTram line will serve this area, making daily life easier for your employees while helping to protect their purchasing power.

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A new roundabout will also be built to improve access to the site.

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It is therefore no surprise though it is always worth emphasizing that the Montpellier Metropolitan Area has been ranked among the leading metropolitan regions in terms of business welcome, resilience, and attractiveness.

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Finally, just minutes before you reveal to the audience the name chosen by the public for these sound stages, I would like to recall that some forty years ago, a masterpiece of French cinema was filmed nearby: Sans toit ni loi (Vagabond), directed by Agnès Varda.

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I hope this moment will also serve to honor her memory she who was part of the early feminist movements, a rebellious figure of the French New Wave, a movement blending feminist and political struggles that formed the foundation of the era’s creative freedom. Through her work, her commitment, and her professional excellence, she succeeded in establishing herself in a field that was, at the time, overwhelmingly dominated by men.