The Factory of Worlds

The Factory of Worlds, an innovative venue in Côte des Légendes (Finistère, Brittany) dedicated to the creation of fictional worlds, including training, support for authors, and an applied research laboratory, is the winner of the call for projects launched by the CNC – Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée (National Center for Cinema and the Moving Image) and the Ministry of Culture.

The Factory of Worlds project is, in a way, the ideal extension of the public interest mission and methodological research work generated by Groupe Ouest in the service of film and fiction writers.

We could summarize it as follows: over the years, Groupe Ouest, based on the Finistère coast, has become a European benchmark in three areas:

• The implementation of collaborative methods to strengthen the process of constructing narratives for the screen, for film, series, and video game writers (today, more than 200 filmmakers per year from all over Europe and beyond benefit from our programs).
• The development of new working tools and processes, fueled by ongoing exchanges with the world of research in both the humanities and cognitive neuroscience.
• The immersion of authors and the dissemination of our collaborative practices in narrative development in a rural and coastal area.

The Factory of Worlds proposes to build—in the former vegetable warehouses occupied by Groupe Ouest in Côte des Légendes—a space fully equipped with tools and rooms conducive to the creation of fictional worlds. Analog or virtual tools for visual, sound, topographical, or sensory representations will open up possibilities during the design or redesign phases.

Financial structure and partners

A large part of the project is devoted to the design and construction of the future space with architects, scenographers, and specialists in immersive technologies, including rooms dedicated to applied research and a space for showcasing stories.

The project also includes the establishment of a team specifically dedicated to promoting and operating this future venue, both for European professionals and future professionals, as well as for French and French-speaking professionals. This operating budget will enable the first years of operation to be launched, in the same collaborative and international spirit as the usual activities of Groupe Ouest, which will be boosted in their execution by the introduction of new physical facilities.

Congratulations to our Breton colleagues—Creative Seeds, Films en Bretagne, and Studio Personne n’est parfait—who are also among the winners!