French humorist Dany Boon, the well known film director of the French box office blockbuster “Bienvenue chez les C’htis” is attempting to repeat his success with his latest outing “Rien à Déclarer” (Nothing to Declare). This time, instead of highlighting the differences between the people of northern and southern France, he is poking fun at how the French and Belgium stereotype each other.

© istockphoto.com/ Sean Locke

The film takes place in a small customs office on the French/Belgium border in 1993 just before the Schengen Agreement came into force. As the border controls slowly disappear, the Belgian and French governments decide to create bi-national patrols forcing former “enemies” to work together and attempt to develop a working cross-cultural relationship.

Belgium and France make a really good setting for this type of comedy. For decades the French have made jokes about the supposed “thickness” of their Belgian neighbours. The Belgians, on the other hand, usually describe their French neighbours as arrogant and over confident. Boon’s latest film is almost entirely based on these French and Belgian stereotypes. Of course, and inevitably, everything is exaggerated to the maximum and is a succession of jokes and insults about both countries.

When the BBC interviewed Boon about his latest film he explained that he wanted to talk about racism and cultural stereotypes in a funny and enjoyable way. He views racism between the Belgians and the French as utterly ridiculous as both populations are “basically the same” and “share a large number of common points such as food, language and religion.”

Boon certainly has a point when he explains that negative stereotypes, racism and hostility between cultures are pointless and lead nowhere. Making fun of these elements can help to show that stereotypes are usually false or exaggerated and often come from a lack of cross-cultural awareness. However, films like Boon’s latest outing can sometimes encourage stereotypes and, although exaggerated, some viewers may believe what they see to be a real portrayal of attitudes between the French and Belgians.

Assuming that two cultures are identical because they share common points such as language or religious beliefs, as Boon indicated in his interview, is equally dangerous. Supporting negative stereotypes and making strong assumptions of similarity can lead to cross-cultural clashes and incidents. Believing that the French and Belgians have the same working habits or perceptions of time for instance can reflect a lack of cross-cultural awareness and risk harming relationships when doing business in France or Belgium.

Working effectively across cultures requires a high level of cross-cultural awareness and the ability to go beyond the many stereotypes that may exist about other cultures. Neighbouring countries often quickly reach for extreme stereotypical clichés due to the long and often tortuous relationship they have endured. As national borders melt away and organisations merge, acquire and integrate their operations, the need for employees and indeed organisations to become much more aware of the role that culture plays is vital. Companies are now more and more investing in cross-cultural awareness training courses such as Doing Business in Belgium or Living and Working in France to help break down these boundaries and develop a sense of common partnership.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2011