Deauville American Film Festival
film festival in Deauville, Normandy, France
The Deauville American Film Festival (French: Festival du cinéma américain de Deauville) is a yearly film festival devoted to American cinema, which has taken place since 1975 in Deauville, France.
It was established by Lionel Chouchan, André Halimi, and then Mayor of Deauville Michel d'Ornano, with support from the Groupe Lucien Barrière in providing a luxurious setting for the Festival. Although not competitive at its origin, the festival began to award prizes for feature films in 1995 and short films in 1998.
In 1992, the city built a convention center to host the annual festival.
Awards
Grand Prix
This award was named Grand Prix spécial Deauville from 1995 to 2007 and Grand Prix du cinéma indépendant américain in 1998 and 1999.
Prix du Jury
The award was called Prix du jury spécial Deauville ('Special Deauville Jury Award') from 1995 through 1997 and Prix spécial du jury du cinéma indépendant américain ('Special Jury Award of American Independent Film') in 1998 and 1999.
Prix du Public
The winner of the Deauville Audience Award is chosen by the festival attendees.
1989: Torch Song Trilogy by Paul Bogart
1990 (tied):
Pump Up the Volume by Allan Moyle
Tune in Tomorrow by Jon Amiel
1991 (tied):
Trust by Hal Hartley
Hangin' with the Homeboys by Joseph B. Vasquez
1992: In the Soup by Alexandre Rockwell
1993 (tied):
El Mariachi by Robert Rodriguez
Naked in New York by Daniel Algrant
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me by Joel Hershman
1994 (tied):
Go Fish by Rose Troche
Clerks by Kevin Smith
1995: Living in Oblivion by Tom DiCillo
1997: The Myth of Fingerprints by Bart Freundlich
1998: Next Stop Wonderland by Brad Anderson
2000: Songcatcher by Maggie Greenwald
2001: Jump Tomorrow by Joel Hopkins
2002: One Hour Photo by Mark Romanek
2003: Dot the i by Matthew Parkhill
2004: Maria Full of Grace by Joshua Marston
2013: Fruitvale Station by Ryan Coogler
2014: Whiplash by Damien Chazelle
2015: Dope by Rick Famuyiwa
2016: Captain Fantastic by Matt Ross
2017: Gifted by Marc Webb
2019: The Peanut Butter Falcon by Tyler Nilson & Michael Schwartz
2020: Uncle Franck by Alan Ball
2022: Emily the Criminal by John Patton Ford
2023: LaRoy, Texas directed by Shane Atkinson
Prix de la Critique Internationale
The International Critics' prize is an award presented at the festival.
1987: Hollywood Shuffle by Robert Townsend
1988: Patti Rocks by David Burton Morris
1989: Signs of Life by John David Coles
1990 (tied):
Metropolitan by Whit Stillman
Tune in Tomorrow by Jon Amiel
1991: My Own Private Idaho by Gus Van Sant
1992: Gas Food Lodging by Allison Anders
1993 (tied):
Public Access by Bryan Singer
The Wedding Banquet by Ang Lee,
1994 (tied):
Federal Hill by Michael Corrente
Little Odessa by James Gray
1995: Swimming with Sharks by George Huang
1996: Bound by The Wachowskis
1997: Sunday by Jonathan Nossiter
1998: Gods and Monsters by Bill Condon
1999: Being John Malkovich by Spike Jonze
2000: Memento by Christopher Nolan
2001: Hedwig and the Angry Inch by John Cameron Mitchell
2002: The Safety of Objects by Rose Troche
2003: American Splendor by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini
2004: Maria Full of Grace by Joshua Marston
2005: Keane by Lodge Kerrigan
2006: Sherrybaby by Laurie Collyer
2007: Grace Is Gone by James C. Strouse
2008: Gardens of the Night by Damian Harris
2009: The Messenger by Oren Moverman
2010: Buried by Rodrigo Cortés
2011: Detachment by Tony Kaye
2012: The We and the I by Michel Gondry
2013: The Retrieval by Chris Eska
2014: It Follows by David Robert Mitchell
2015: Krisha by Trey Edward Schultz
2016: The Fits by Anna Rose Holmer
2017: A Ghost Story by David Lowery
2020 : The Nest by Sean Durkin
2021: Red Rocket directed by Sean Baker
2022: Aftersun directed by Charlotte Wells
2023: LaRoy, Texas directed by Shane Atkinson
2024: Color Book directed by David Fortune
2025: The Plague directed by Charlie Polinger
Prix d'Ornano-Valenti
The Prix d'Ornano-Valenti (previously Prix Michel d'Ornano) is awarded annually to a debut French film. It carries a grant of 3,000 euros for the awarded director-writer, 3,000 euros for the film's producer, and 10,000 euros for the French distributor to help promote the film.
The public source identifies “Deauville American Film Festival” as film festival in Deauville, Normandy, France. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Deauville, American and Film.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Deauville American Film Festival”, the useful work is to connect “film festival in Deauville, Normandy, France” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1408657. VIAF identifies the subject as 157717802. Authority coordinates are 49.360, 0.080. 1 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1975, 1995, 1998 and 1992.
Later fame can flatten the distinction between original context, subsequent adaptation and institutional collecting history. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.
- Identifying works and editions
- Tracing reception history
- Finding collection records
The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Deauville American Film Festival”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Deauville American Film Festival primary sources, Deauville American Film Festival archive and Deauville research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Deauville American Film Festival”?
- How did later circulation or interpretation alter the work’s reception?
- Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Deauville American Film Festival” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.