French Film Festival

Bienvenue to the French Film Festival Aotearoa 2026! This year marks the 20th edition celebrating French film in Aotearoa, and it is truly fantastique to return to 24 towns and cities across the motu. Our 2026 line-up showcases stories that encompass a variety of perspectives and genres, and I hope you’ll enjoy discovering them.

We’re never short of a biopic, and this year we have The Richest Woman in the World about the billionaire heiress to the L’Oréal fortune, and De Gaulle, which charts Charles de Gaulle’s rise as a military leader and politician during World War II. Also on show is The Money Maker, which tells the fascinating story of a counterfeiter known as the “Cezanne of money” for his artistic skills in post-war Paris, and Case 137, a gripping police story, for which Léa Drucker was deservedly awarded the 2026 César and Lumière Best Actress awards. Literary themes are also well spotlighted this year: we have a stylish adaption of Albert Camus’ famous 1942 novella The Stranger, and the much anticipated adaptation from Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables story: the dramatic Jean Valjean. Victor Hugo is again highlighted in the wonderful modern comedy An Evening With Victor Hugo.

Enjoy your journey through our selection of French cinema, we’ve certainly been looking forward to bringing it to you.