Cannes Film Festival 2026 Returns To The Riviera

Every May, the French Riviera transforms into the center of the film world, and in 2026 the tradition continues as the 79th Cannes Film Festival prepares to welcome filmmakers, actors, critics, and global media from across the globe. Scheduled to take place from May this year’s festival will be opened by The Electric Kiss, directed by French filmmaker Pierre Salvadori, setting the tone for nearly two weeks of premieres, press screenings, and red-carpet events.

One of the most notable announcements for Cannes 2026 is the selection of acclaimed South Korean director Park Chan-wook as Jury President. Known globally for visually distinctive films such as Oldboy and Decision to Leave, Park becomes the first Korean filmmaker to chair the Cannes jury.

As always, the Official Competition section remains the heart of the Cannes Film Festival. In total, 22 films are competing for the Palme d’Or this year, representing filmmakers from Europe, Asia, the Americas, and the Middle East:

• Amarga Navidad (Bitter Christmas) - Pedro Almodóvar

• A Woman’s Life - Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet

• La Bola Negra - Javier Calvo & Javier Ambrossi

• Coward - Lukas Dhont

• Parallel Tales - Asghar Farhadi

• Paper Tiger - James Gray

• The Dreamed Adventure - Valeska Grisebach

• All of a Sudden - Ryusuke Hamaguchi

• The Unknown - Arthur Harari

• Another Day (Garance) - Jeanne Herry

• The Beloved - Rodrigo Sorogoyen

• Fjord - Cristian Mungiu

• Moulin - László Nemes

• Fatherland - Paweł Pawlikowski

• The Man I Love - Ira Sachs

• Hope - Na Hong-jin

• Nagi Notes - Kōji Fukada

• Sheep in the Box - Hirokazu Kore-eda

• Gentle Monster - Marie Kreutzer

• Histoires de la Nuit - Léa Mysius

• Notre Salut - Emmanuel Marre

• Minotaur - Andrey Zvyagintsev

Beyond the main competition, several parallel sections will showcase emerging filmmakers and experimental storytelling, including:

• Un Certain Regard

• Cannes Première

• Directors’ Fortnight

• Critics’ Week

• ACID Cannes

These sections often introduce fresh voices that later become major names in world cinema. See films in all sections here.

The festival will conclude on Saturday, May 23, when the Palme d’Or and other major awards will be presented during the closing ceremony at the Palais des Festivals.