Florian Sitbon, 49, director from independent theater and defender of hip-hop cultures, now embodies culture at Paris town hall. His appointment as deputy mayor in charge of culture, cultural sovereignty and free media corresponds to the line of an executive led by Emmanuel Grégoire, in search of an artistic policy that is both autonomous and popular. This profile of a grassroots artist breaks with its more institutional predecessors.
Florian Sitbon trained at the National Higher Conservatory of Dramatic Art (Nomade Directing Unit). In 1997, he founded the Florian Sitbon Company which became Darius Company in 2016. He works with masters such as Piotr Fomenko in Moscow, Peter Mussbach in Aix-en-Provence, Jacques Lassalle and Bernard Sobel. A state-certified theater teacher after a stint at the National Theater of Strasbourg and the Cours Florent, in 2006 he founded the Theater Training Studio in Vitry-sur-Seine. He also collaborates with Binôme Théâtre et Science.
Elected Paris councilor in June 2020 on the “Paris en Commun – Ecology for Paris” (PS) list, Florian Sitbon represents the 15th arrondissement, chairs the majority group and sits on the 3rd permanent commission, responsible for public space, transport and security. It intervenes in particular on subsidies to social centers and support for the associative sector. In November 2025, he supported a deliberation by the Directorate of Cultural Affairs (DAC) allocating 44,000 euros to seven hip-hop projects. He describes hip-hop as “global popular culture” and a vector of plural creation.
Its scope covers culture, “cultural sovereignty”, understood as the autonomy of artists and institutions in the face of economic concentrations and national arbitrations, as well as free media, with the objective of supporting pluralism and independent editorial staff. The Town Hall relies on the DAC which manages libraries, conservatories, fine arts workshops, municipal museums and support for theaters or festivals.
The initial 2026 budget for Culture amounts to 252 million euros. Operating expenses reach 183 million euros, an increase of one million, including 110 million in direct subsidies and around 20 million for artistic education. Investments amount to 64 million euros. The centrist opposition and MoDem denounce an “artificial” increase, linked according to them to budget transfers, and highlight a drop of 6.7 million euros in investments.
Florian Sitbon succeeds Carine Rolland (2020-2026), in charge of culture and the “quarter-hour city”, Christophe Girard (2001-2012 and 2018-2020), notably associated with the creation of Nuit Blanche and forced to resign in the context of the Matzneff affair, Bruno Julliard (2012-2018), in charge of culture and youth. Less experienced in administrative management than those profiles coming from ministerial offices or large organizations, he stands out for a career rooted in independent creation.
