The Cannes selection programmed by filmmakers
In 1993, a group of filmmakers decided to create a professional showcase to show a parallel section of feature films at Cannes. The idea was to connect a wider selection of directors with thousands of professionals.
This “laboratory”, as they called it, became ACID, a parallel section at the Cannes Film Festival since 1993. Each year,the programme showcases nine feature films, fiction and documentaries, often without a distributor, chosen by some fifteen filmmakers from the association (members, programmed at ACID Cannes in previous years).
The 51 ACID screenings – including 9 market screenings within the Palais – are open to professionals and the general public, and are all followed by meetings with the film teams and filmmakers of the ACID.
The films are then accompanied through the various stages of distribution: search for a distributor, promotion, programming and support in the 400 partner cinemas of the ACID, the festivals and partner cultural venues in some 20 countries.
There are also more than 500 meetings, ACID POP masterclasses and workshops.
How do you submit a film to ACID Cannes?
The ACID Cannes 2026 program is organized by the Association for the Diffusion of Independent Cinema and will be held in Cannes from May 13 to May 22, 2026, as part of the Cannes International Film Festival.
To be eligible, films must meet the following conditions:
- Feature-length (minimum duration of 60 minutes) never submitted to ACID Cannes (even under a different edit or title);
- Produced after May 1, 2025;
- Available as a world or international premiere (not previously screened outside the countries of production);
- Not previously selected at Berlin/Venice/Locarno/Toronto/San Sebastian;
- Not previously commercially released in any format in France: theaters, online distribution (free, pay-per-view, or subscription), French TV or any channel broadcasting in France, paid or free;
- Able to provide, if the film is selected for ACID Cannes, a DCP subtitled in English for French-language films; subtitled in English and French for non-English-language films; subtitled in French for English-language films. For films that have benefited from a pre-purchase for audiovisual distribution (TV, streaming platform, internet, etc.), the following two criteria must be met:
- Have a distributor (an entity capable of demonstrating recognized activity as a distributor and a professional programmer);
- Be able to guarantee an initial theatrical release in accordance with regulations (respecting the media chronology) without any prior distribution on any other platform (TV, streaming, internet, etc.).
If you have a movie that is eligible (or work with someone that does), the full application process can be consulted on the ACID Cannes website.
(Michael Leahy. Photo: Tima Miroshnichenko)