Alliance Française French Film Festival 2026
Angelina Jolie's latest performance, a dystopian AI-ruled Paris and a noir story set in 1930's Algeria lead the AFFFF 2026 program.
Overview
Each autumn, cinephiles across Australia score a super-sized French treat: a feast of flicks hitting the big screen, all thanks to the Alliance Française French Film Festival. In 2025, the festival broke attendance records. For its 37th run in 2026, the festival is stepping up to go even bigger.
On the program, expect pictures that span the full depth of French filmmaking. The festival's complete offering is in the dozens, but if you're short on time and ticket funds, several headline titles have been announced as the standout entries you'll be able to watch in cinemas across the country come March and April.
The Stranger, François Ozon
Leading the pack is The Stranger, a new drama from director François Ozon (Swimming Pool, 8 Women) that adapts a novella by Albert Camus into a black and white tale of a young expatriate charged with murder in 1930s French-colonised Algeria.
Then there's a more heart-warming entry, What is Love? from director Fabien Gorgeart (Diane Has the Right Shape) that explores the complexities of love and new beginnings through a couple that must prove to the church that their marriage is fit for annulment. Then there's the bilingual Coutures, directed by Alice Winocour and starring Angelina Jolie, which follows the intersecting, rebellious paths of three women on opposite sides of the runway as they seek solidarity during Paris Fashion Week.
DOG 51, Cédric Jimenez
Amélie Bonnin's Leave One Day is a feature film adaptation of her award-winning short film of the same name, where a promising Paris chef and restaurateur-to-be has to drop everything and return to her small hometown to help her ailing father. Science fiction fans should bookmark DOG 51, where director Cédric Jimenez has envisioned a murder conspiracy set in a dystopian Paris divided by social classes and ruled by an AI program.
The Party's Over! from Antony Cordier dives into social issues in a more grounded present-day setting, with a dispute between two parties threatening to upend the beginning of a young corporate lawyer before it even begins.
Jean Valjean, Eric Besnard
And finally, a supplement to one of the most famous works of French literature, Les Misérables, is Jean Valjean. Stripping back the musical element, this film from Eric Besnard focuses on the origins of the tale's protagonist and the crucial decision that defines his future.
The 2026 Alliance Française French Film Festival will run in various theatres in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra, Perth and Adelaide from Tuesday, March 3 to Sunday, April 26. Tickets go on sale on Thursday, February 5, visit the website for tickets to screenings at your nearest theatre and the full program.
Lead image: 'Coutures' by Alice Winocour
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