Unifrance has released the results of a study on image of French cinema across the world.

Amélie

French film export agency Unifrance, which fetes its 65th anniversary this year, has released the results of a study on image of French cinema across the globe and the findings are surprising.

“French cinema is the second most exported cinema in the world after that of the US,” said Unifrance president Jean-Paul Salomé.

According to the study the nations most fond of French cinema were Russia, Germany, the US and Britain.

The most cited French films were AmélieUntouchablesTaxiLéonAmourThe ArtistThe Pianist and Welcome to the Sticks

Interestingly, the French stars with the biggest international reputations belonged to an older generation.

In order, Gerard Depardieu came on top, followed by Jean Reno, Alain Delon, Catherine Deneuve, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Brigitte Bardot and Audrey Tautou as the best known French acting names internationally.

The best-known directors were Luc Besson, Francois Truffaut and Roman Polanski, Jean-Luc Godard and Jean Renoir, Jean-Jacques Annaud and Claude Lelouch.