Pokémon in France

The Pokémon franchise first reached in September 5, 1999 with the airing of Le départ on Fox Kids in the French language. The French releases of Pokémon Red and Blue Versions followed a month later on October 8, 1999.
==Pokémon video games==
All of the core series games have been released in France. All of the spin-off Pokémon games have been released in France as well, including Pokémon Project Studio Red and Blue. The only Pokémon game that hasn't been released in France is Pokémon Conquest, though its English version has been sold in and . As in the rest of Europe, Pokémon Trozei! is sold under the title Pokémon Link!. All Pokémon games sold in France have been translated into the French language.
With some exceptions such as , most of the Pokémon species names are completely localized into the French language. For more information on these translated names, see list of French Pokémon names.
Some of the studios behind the French Pokémon animated series dub were involved with the games. Ares-Films is credited in Super Smash Bros. alongside Guylaine Gibert (the French voice of Jigglypuff) and Jean-Marc Delhausse (the French announcer), and is also credited in Pokémon Channel. SDI Media Belgium was where the French dubs of PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure and PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond were recorded. Some other games' French dubs were recorded in different locations: Pokémon Battle Revolution's was done in and Super Smash Bros. Brawl's Pokémon-related voices were recorded in .
==Pokémon animation==
The French dub of the Pokémon animated series has been recorded and produced by various companies. It was first handled by Ares-Films,Ares-Films catalog who outsourced dubbing to Belgium-based Studio La Dame Blanche up to Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire.Dame Blanche portfolio (Archive 1, Archive 2) Ares-Films then outsourced the animated series to SDI Media-ownedSDI Media Acquires Sun Studio - SDI Media (September 7, 2006) Sun Studio BelgiumSun Studio Belgium approved and under construction... Sun Studios (March 20, 2004) (later renamed SDI Media Belgium) for Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl. Ares-Films' final season was Combats Galactiques, and SDI Media (which merged with Iyuno in 2021) has recorded and produced the dub since Les Vainqueurs de la Ligue de Sinnoh.
The French dub is based on the English dub by 4Kids Entertainment and The Pokémon Company International. Like the Pokémon species names, most characters in the animated series were renamed in the French dub. However, a modified version of the dub up to Master Quest was recorded by the same cast for export to French , using English character and Pokémon names.
===Disney XD===
 (formerly Fox Kids France and then Jetix France), was the first network in the country to air the animated series beginning with La Ligue Indigo in 1999
The channel aired every season up until Aventures à Unys in 2014, which by then, the channel's rights to the animated series expired.
===TF1===
 premiered the animated series on December 24, 1999, as a sneak-peak, with the first five episodes of La Ligue Indigo being edited and broadcast as a TV movie before the official premiere of the series on January 3, 2000, as part of the block TF! later replaced with TFOU. The channel aired the series up until Advanced Challenge in 2005.
===Gulli===
 has aired the animated series since 2006, and have since broadcast every season.
The first four episodes of the Pokémon, la série XY: La Quête de Kalos aired on May 1, 2015 with the special episode Mega Evolution Special I on . Pokémon, la série : XYZ premiered on April 13, 2016, with the airing of the first four episodes of the season.
As of Pokémon, la série : Soleil et Lune and La série : Pokémon, les voyages, Gulli are the second run network for the animated series in the country.
===Canal J===
 started airing the animated series on January 1, 2014 with a New Year's marathon consisting of episodes from Aventures à Unys, the sneak preview of the first two episodes of Pokémon, la série : XY, as well as airings of Kyurem VS la Lame de la Justice and Genesect et l'éveil de la légende.https://lesaccrosauxseries1.wordpress.com/2013/12/08/canal-j-pokemon-arrive-le-1er-janvier-pour-une-journee-speciale/
The channel has gone on to air the entirety of Pokémon, la série : XY, as well as the main French run of Pokémon, la série : Soleil et Lune and La série : Pokémon, les voyages as well.
Currently, the channel is airing episodes of La série : Pokémon, les horizons.
===MCM===
 began airing the animated series in early-2019, and airs episodes from Pokémon, la série : Le commencement and Pokémon, la série : Or et Argent.
===M6===
 began airing the animated series in April 2019 by acquiring the broadcast rights to Pokémon: Noir et Blanc'.
===Canal+===
's streaming service myCANAL offers up episodes from Pokémon, la série : XY, Pokémon, la série : Soleil et Lune and La série : Pokémon, les voyages for streaming.
===Movies and specials===
The special episode Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time & Darkness was released in France with the title . The special was available on a DVD which was given away with preorders of the games Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness. The DVD contained both a French dub of the special as well as the Japanese version with French subtitles.
 debuted on French cinemas in May 8, 2019. It was dubbed into European French.
===Home releases===
The home video release of the European French dub of Pokémon has been handled by several companies. The earliest home releases of the original series were distributed by TF1 Vidéo, though these releases are now out of print. Currently, the original series of the animated series is distributed by Editions Atlas, which has released the episodes as a series titled . The Planète Pokémon collection begins at EP001 and ends at EP157. The collection includes Holiday Hi-Jynx and Snow Way Out!, which, like in the Region 1 English releases, are sequenced between EP064 and EP065.
Currently, Pokémon: Advanced Battle and Pokémon: Battle Frontier are available in boxed sets which are distributed by Zylo. These releases come in carrying cases with a handle. The Pokémon movies are currently distributed by France Télévisions Distribution.
===Music===
All theme songs used in the French dub of the Pokémon animated series are translated versions of the English themes used by 4Kids Entertainment and The Pokémon Company International.
Two Pokémon soundtrack albums have been released in France. The first, , is a translation of Pokémon 2.B.A. Master. A special edition version of this soundtrack was released with a five-track bonus disc containing two remixes of Pokédance, two remixes of the English Pokémon (Dance Mix), and a rerecorded version of La Chanson d'Ondine sung by Barbi Schiller. The second album to be released in France was , a translation of Totally Pokémon. Voyage à Johto contained two bonus tracks: the opening theme Voyage à Johto and Pikachu (À l'attaque) sung by the group Les MiniGirls.
One single was released in France as well: , a translated version of the single.
===Cast and crew===
Many voice actors and actresses have contributed to the production of the French dub of the Pokémon animated series. All of the voice actors are based in .
The director of the dub is Jean-Daniel Nicodème, who also provided the voice of the narrator until season 11, with Michel Hinderyckx taking over afterwards, Wattson (known in France as Voltère) and Crasher Wake (Lovis in French). Jean-Marc Anthony Kabeya performs the vocals for many of the theme songs.
Ash Ketchum (whose first name became Sacha in French) is voiced by Aurélien Ringelheim. (known as Ondine) is voiced by Fanny Roy, who also provides the voice for Tate (Levy). Tracey Sketchit (Jacky Léon) was voiced by Bruno Mullenaerts.
 (Pierre) has usually been voiced by Antoni LoPresti; in a few episodes in the original series, Laurent Chauvet (now known as Laurent Sao) voiced the character.
 (Flora) is voiced by Maia Baran. Her brother, Max, is voiced by Guylaine Gibert, who also provides the voice of Officer Jenny (Agent Jenny). Lydia Cherton provided the voice of Nurse Joy (Infirmière Joëlle) before she moved to France.
 (Aurore) is voiced by Alexandra Corréa. Her rival, Zoey (Zoé), is voiced by Claire Tefnin.
Jessie is voiced by Catherine Conet, who also provides the voice of Delia Ketchum. James has been voiced for the entire series by David Manet. (Miaouss) was voiced by Nessym Guetat from EP002 to AG145. Starting from AG146, he has been voiced by Philippe Tasquin because Guetat had moved to France. The boss of Team Rocket, Giovanni, is voiced by Patrick Deschamps.
Gary Oak (Régis Chen) has been voiced by Jean-Marc Delhausse and Lionel Bourguet. Gary's grandfather, Professor Oak (Professeur Chen), is also voiced by Delhausse. One of Ash's other rivals, Paul, has been voiced by Alessandro Bevilacqua (DP002-DP052) and Gauthier De Fauconval (DP053-Present).
 (Rachid) is voiced by Maxime Donnay, and is voiced by Beatrice Wegnez.
Other notable voice actors from the French dub of the Pokémon animated series include Marie Van Renterghem as Cassidy (Cassidi), Romain Barbieux as Harley, and Gregory Praet as .
M04 and M07 were dubbed in France instead of Belgium, with only Nessym Guetat as Meowth reprising his role. Ash was voiced by Charles Pestel, Misty by Anouck Hautbois, Brock by Pascal Nowak, Jessie by Chantal Baroin, and James by Thomas Roditi.http://doublagefrancophone.lebonforum.com/t312p15-pokemon-les-films-depuis-1999 M06 was also dubbed in France, with a completely different cast from M04 and M07, including Valérie Nosrée as Jessie and Luc Boulad as James.
Pokémon Generations was dubbed at Deluxe Media Paris, with voice direction by Nathanel Alimi. The dubbing cast included Donald Reignoux as , Charles Pestel as Tabitha, and Pascal Nowak as Burgh, among others.
==Pokémon Trading Card Game==
The Pokémon Trading Card Game reached France on November 18, 1999 with the release of the . As in North America, the Pokémon Trading Card Game was originally distributed by Wizards of the Coast and later by The Pokémon Company International after Wizards lost their license to distribute the TCG.
France has received all of the same expansion sets that have been released in North America except for , , , , , , , and . Reprints and re-releases do not always line up with English and other international releases, such as France getting an exclusive reprint of (Légendes Brillantes) in 2021.
French-language cards are recognized as tournament legal for Play! Pokémon, and are exported to , (French ), and other French-speaking regions. French-language cards can rarely be mistakenly found in English-language TCG products; for instance, cards from the French version of were mistakenly inserted into English packs.
==Pokémon manga==
Many Pokémon manga have been translated into European French.
Magical Pokémon Journey was translated as Pikachu Adventures! by Glénat. Only the first five volumes were translated, after which the series was discontinued due to copyright issues. Most of the human characters receive unique names: Hazel is named "Marin" and Almond is named "Armand". This manga was published in a left-to-right format with reversed artwork, as that is the format which French comics are typically published. Glénat also published a translation of Pokémon: Yeah! I Got Pokémon! (translated as ), although only the first two volumes were translated, as the series did not perform well in France.
Pokémon Adventures was first translated into French by Glénat using the title . Originally, Glénat split each volume into two separate monthly issues, and then later republished the chapters in their original volume format. Only the first six volumes were published, as Glénat suddenly had to discontinue their edition due to copyright issues. and were renamed to "Sacha" and "Régis", the names used for and in the . was renamed to "Olga", and to "Jamy". Other characters such as Professor Oak receive their names from the French versions of the games. This manga was published in a left-to-right format with reversed artwork. Beginning in 2011, the of Pokémon Adventures started being translated into French by publisher Kurokawa under the title . The chapters are being collected directly from the magazine publication and are unique from VIZ Media's translation of the arc. The first French volume was released on September 8, 2011. Kurokawa's translation of the retains the original right-to-left Japanese reading order. In April 2014, it was announced by Kurokawa that they would be rereleasing the and the in a set of three omnibus volumes, beginning on June 12, 2014 with volume one. This release, while continuing to use the "Pokémon: La Grande Adventure!" name, features an entirely new translation more faithful to the original Japanese version and consistent with Kurokawa's release of the Black & White arc. Following the completion and success of these story arcs, Kurokawa began releasing an omnibus French translation of the and a French translation of the mini-volumes published in Japan.
Kurokawa has also translated four of the movie manga adaptations into French - (), (), () and ().
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Ginji's Rescue Team was translated with the title . Unlike the other manga published in France, Pokémon Donjon Mystère: Les secouristes de Ginji was translated directly by Nintendo of France. It was the first manga in France that was published in the original right-to-left format with artwork unaltered from the Japanese version. It was published in two volumes of three chapters each which were given away in issues 52 and 53 of Nintendo Magazine.
===Gallery===
File:Magical Pokémon Journey FR volume 1.png|Cover artwork for volume one of Pikachu Adventures!
File:Pokémon Adventures FR volume 2.png|Cover artwork for volume 2 of Pokémon: La Grande Adventure!
File:Pokémon Adventures BW FR volume 1.png|Pokémon Noir et Blanc volume 1 cover artwork
File:Pokémon Adventures FR omnibus 1.png|Cover for Pokémon: La Grande Adventure! omnibus 1
File:Pokémon Adventures RS FR omnibus 1.png|Cover for Pokémon: La Grande Adventure! Rubis et Saphir omnibus 1
File:Pokémon Adventures XY FR volume 1.png|Cover artwork for Pokémon XY volume 1
File:Pokémon Gotta Catch 'Em All FR volume 1.png|Cover artwork for volume one of Pokémon: Attrapez-les tous!
File:Zoroark manga France.png|Cover artwork for Zoroark: Le Maître des Illusions
File:Movie 14 manga cover France.png|Cover artwork for Pokémon, le Film Blanc—Victini Et Zekrom
File:M15 manga cover FR.png|Cover artwork for Kyurem VS la Lame de la Justice
File:M16 manga cover FR.png|Cover artwork for Genesect et l'éveil de la légende
==Pokémon merchandise==
Many different types of Pokémon toys, plush dolls, games, and other collectibles have been released in France. Many Pokémon toys which are manufactured by Jakks Pacific in North America, such as the Sinnoh Region Playset, are distributed in France by . Additionally, world-renowned German puzzle manufacturer has released several Pokémon-themed puzzles in France.
The Pokémon Chapter Books were translated into European French by . Beginning in 2012, a Pokémon Journeys: The Series of chapter book adaptations was released by . These novels are adapted from Pokémon the Series: Black & White and Pokémon the Series: XY of the animated series and were not based directly on any previous novels. There are currently 33 novels in the series as well as one choose-your-own-adventure novel.
Hasbro's Pokémon Battling Coin Game received a French release in the late 1990s, known under the title . In the early 2000s, collectible cardboard discs called Pokémon Be Yaps were available. Other collectibles available in France include the Pokémon Advanced Action Cards and Pokémon Trading Cards series 1.
For a period of time after the game's release, there were special merchandise items available for purchase on Nintendo's official French website: A red t-shirt or polo shirt featuring the Pokémon Platinum logo, a rubber ball featuring Giratina's Origin Forme, and a Giratina bookmark. However, these items are no longer available.
==Community==
The biggest Pokémon fan sites based in France are PokéBip, Pokémon Espace, Eternia, Pokémon Trash and Pokémon-France. Pokégraph is the biggest French community of Pokémon drawing and artwork. Additionally, the French language member of Encyclopædiæ Pokémonis, Poképédia, is also based in France.
==Events==
An event called Pokémon Masters 2005 was held in Paris from September 17–18, 2005. It was organized by many fan sites, including Pokémon-France, and was sponsored by official companies including Nintendo and . The event included championship battles for and a Pokémon Trading Card Game championship tournament (the latter of which was the official introduction of Pokémon Organized Play in France). Additionally, the event featured a demo of Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness (which would be released in Europe two months later, in November 2005), displays of animated series and game merchandise, and distributions of the AuroraTicket.
Similar events were held previously on October 30–31, 2004 (titled Pokélord Masters 2004; named after Pokémon-France's previous name, Pokélord) and subsequently on December 2–3, 2006 (titled Festival Pokémon). Ten different event Pokémon were distributed at Festival Pokémon in commemoration of the Pokémon 10th Anniversary: , , , , , , , , and . All ten Pokémon have an OT of 10ANNIV and ID 06227, and are identical to the from Toys"R"Us in Paris earlier in the year. 
A temporary store was opened in Paris from June 4, 2014 through June 21, 2014. The store featured an exhibition of illustrations from the Pokémon games, interactive events for fans, and the opportunity to purchase merchandise brought over from the Japanese Pokémon Center shops.
==Trivia==
* Julien Bardakoff, the French-language localizer for early Pokémon games, is known for voicing internationally in his early Nintendo 64 franchise appearances.
==External links==
* The official France Pokémon website (full website)
* Pokémon on Gulli's website (in French)
==References==
==Related articles==
*List of French Pokémon names
*List of French Pokémon themes
ja:フランスにおけるポケモン