On Thursday, April 9, Iris Knobloch and Thierry Frémaux, President and Artistic Director of the Cannes International Film Festival, respectively, announced the majority of the films selected for this 79th edition.
There are many French films in Competition this year, featuring a strong contingent of emerging filmmakers—including three female directors (Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet, Arthur Harari, Jeanne Herry, Emmanuel Marre, and Léa Mysius), and three international directors who have shot films in France (Asghar Farhadi, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, and László Nemes).
The complete line-up of the official selection's strands will be finalized in the coming weeks.
In the parallel sections, a large number of French films will showcase emerging talent, whether at Critic's Week (featuring the debut films of Phuong Mai Nguyen, Marine Atlan and Félix de Givry) or at ACID (Tom Fontenille, Paul Nouhet, Guillaume Massart, and the duo Lola Cambourieu and Yann Berlier). As for the Directors' Fortnight, Maxence Voiseux, Sarah Arnold and Lila Pinell will present their first or second feature films, but this year’s festival will also be an opportunity to catch up with acclaimed filmmakers such as Sébastien Laudenbach, Radu Jude and Quentin Dupieux (twice!), not to mention the veteran Alain Cavalier, who has announced that this will be his final film.
All the French films selected in the Cannes Film Festival 2026 official selection
Opening Film
Competition
- A Woman's Life by Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet
- Parallel Tales by Asghar Farhadi
- All of a Sudden by Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
- The Unknown by Arthur Harari
- Another Day by Jeanne Herry
- A Man of His Time by Emmanuel Marre
- The Birthday Party by Léa Mysius
- Moulin by László Nemes
- La bola negra by Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (minority-French co-production)
- Fjord by Cristian Mungiu (minority-French co-production)
- Coward by Lukas Dhont (minority-French co-production)
- Nagi Notes, de Koji Fukada (minority-French co-production)
- The Dreamed Adventure by Valeska Grisebach (minority-French co-production)
- Fatherland by Pawel Pawlikowski (minority-French co-production)
- The Beloved by Rodrigo Sorogoyen (minority-French co-production)
- Minotaur by Andreï Zviaguintsev (French co-production share not specified)
- Gentle Monster by Marie Kreutzer (minority-French co-production)
Out of Competition
- De Gaulle: Tilting Iron by Antonin Baudry
- Karma by Guillaume Canet
- Forsaken by Vincent Garenq
- Crescendo by Agnès Jaoui
Special Screenings
- Marvelous Mornings by Avril Besson
- Women on Trial by Lauriane Escaffre and Yvo Muller
- Che Guevara : The Last Companions by Christophe Dimitri Réveille
Un certain regard
- Iron Boy by Louis Clichy
- Strawberries by Laïla Marrakchi
- Words of Love by Rudi Rosenberg
- Elephants in the Fog by Abinash Bikram Shah (French co-production share not specified)
- Forever You Maternal Animal by Valentina Maurel (minority-French co-production)
- Congo Boy by Rafiki Fariala (French co-production share not specified)
Cannes Première
Midnight Screenings
- Roma Elastica by Bertrand Mandico
- Full Phil by Quentin Dupieux
- Sanguine by Marion Le Corroller
- Jim Queen by Marco Nguyen and Nicolas Athané
French Films at the 65th Semaine de la Critique
Opening film
Competition
- La Gradiva by Marine Atlan
- The Station by Sara Ishaq (French co-production share not specified)
- A Girl Unknown by Jing Zou (minority-French co-production)
- Dua de Blerta Basholli (minority-French co-production)
- Tin Castle by Alexander Murphy (French co-production share not specified)
Closing film
Special Screenings
French Films at the 65th Semaine de la Critique
Opening Film
Selection
- La Gradiva by Marine Atlan
- The Station by Sara Ishaq (French co-production share not specified)
- A Girl Unknown by Jing Zou (minority-French co-production)
- Dua by Blerta Basholli (minority-French co-production)
- Tin Castle by Alexander Murphy (French co-production share not specified)
Closing Film
Special Screenings
French Films at the 2026 Quinzaine des cinéastes
Opening Film
Selection
- Viva Carmen by Sébastien Laudenbach
- Gabin by Maxence Voiseux
- Diary of a Chambermaid by Radu Jude
- Too Many Beasts by Sarah Arnold
- Le Vertige by Quentin Dupieux
- Thanks for Coming by Alain Cavalier
- Shana by Lila Pinell
- We Are Aliens by Kohei Kadowaki (minority-French co-production)
- Dora, by July Jung (minority-French co-production)
- 9 Temples to Heaven by Sompot Chidgasornpongse (minority-French co-production)
Les films français en sélection ACID Cannes 2026
- Into the Jaws of the Ogre de Mahsa Karampour
- A Secret Heart de Tom Fontenille
- Rewind Barcelona de Paul Nouhet
- Blaise de Jean-Paul Guigue, Dimitri Planchon
- Detention de Guillaume Massart
- Under a Bad Star de Lola Cambourieu, Yann Berlier
- Promised Spaces de Ivan Marković (French co-production share not specified)
- Summer Drift de Céline Carridroit, Aline Suter (French co-production share not specified)
