Albertine Cinémathèque is designed to expand access to French cinema and support film programming at American colleges and universities.
It provides grants for on-campus French film festivals to its members, along with extensive resources to enrich their events, including: — A curated list of films selected by its programming committee — Opportunities to bring filmmakers into dialogue with students
American Universities and Colleges faculty can Become a Member of Albertine Cinémathèque for free!
Festival Grant – Covering Screening Fees for Six Films
Albertine Cinémathèque continues to support French film festivals on campus through its annual Festival Grant program. Successful applicants will be selected by a committee of university faculty and will be invited to choose six films from the 2026–2027 Film Selection, for inclusion in their festival. The screening fees for the six films will be paid directly to the distributors by Albertine Foundation.
If you are interested in applying to French in Higher Education, please consult this page.
We are thrilled to announce the 2026-2027 Albertine Cinémathèque Grantees who will be organizing a French film festival on their campuses as part of our long-standing program with US colleges and universities.
This year, our Selection Committee has chosen to reward 55 French Film Festivals from a highly competitive pool of applicants. These festivals stood out for their strong curatorial and artistic vision, thoughtful integration into academic curricula, and potential for significant impact within their institutions.
As part of the program, Grantees will screen at least six films from our 2026–2027 Film Selection.
ATLANTA AREA
Géorgie (GA)
Alabama (AL)
Caroline du Nord (NC)
Tennessee (TN)
Caroline du Sud (SC)
BOSTON AREA
Vermont (VT)
CHICAGO AREA
Ohio (OH)
Kentucky (KY)
Indiana (IN)
Wisconsin (WI)
Iowa (IA)
Missouri (MO)
Michigan (MI)
Minnesota (MN)
WASHINGTON DC AREAPennsylvanie (PA)
Virginie (VA)
Christopher Newport University
HOUSTON AREA
Texas (TX)
Arkansas (AR)
LOS ANGELES AREA
California:
Nouveau-Mexique (NM)
Colorado (CO)
Californie (CA)
MIAMI AREA
Florida (FL)
Puerto Rico (PR)
NEW ORLEANS AREA Louisiana (LA)
NEW YORK AREA
New Jersey (NJ)
New York (NY)
Connecticut (CT)
SAN FRANCISCO AREA
Montana (MT)
Hawaï (HI)
Utah (UT)
Idaho (ID)
Washington (WA)
Congratulations to our Grantees and thank you to everyone who applied!
A special thank you to our dedicated University Committee members: Anne Kern (SUNY Purchase College), Sam Di Iorio (CUNY Hunter College) and David Gerstner (CUNY College of Staten Island)
The next call for applications for the 2026–2027 academic year will open this fall. We strongly encourage all Members to (re)apply, and we look forward to continuing to support your inspiring film festivals.
Albertine Cinémathèque is thrilled to announce its Film Selection for 2026/2027 showcasing the best of French Cinema in the United States!
The Film Selection is composed of four distinctive parts:
— CONTEMPORARY FILMS— YOUNG FRENCH CINEMA (in collaboration with UNIFRANCE)— ALTERNATIVE LIST— CLASSIC FILMS
Albertine Cinémathèque provides US universities/colleges with a great selection of 28 contemporary films and 6 classic films for French film festivals on US campuses.
For the first time this year, we are delighted to include in the Albertine Cinematheque Film Selection, 6 films from the Young French Cinema program dedicated to emerging talents, in collaboration with Unifrance.
This year’s selection assembles a broad spectrum of contemporary and classic French cinema, highlighting both bold artistic voices and pressing social perspectives. From Carine Tardieu’s delicate portrait of human connection in The Ties That Bind Us (César Award for Best Film 2026) and Boris Lojkine’s powerful Souleymane’s Story, to the urgent works of Jafar Panahi and Villa Albertine resident Sepideh Farsi, It Was Just an Accident (Palme d’Or, Cannes Film Festival 2026) and Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk, the program reflects cinema’s ability to illuminate both intimate lives and broader realities.
The lineup also celebrates the medium itself: from its very origins in Lumière! Le cinéma by Thierry Frémaux to its modern reimagining in Nouvelle Vague by Richard Linklater, accompanied by the landmark film that inspired it, Breathless by Jean-Luc Godard. The evolution of cinematic language continues through animation with Oscar-nominated works such as Arco by Ugo Bienvenu and Little Amélie or the Character of the Rain by Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han.
Bringing together established masters like François Ozon with The Stranger and emerging filmmakers such as Hafsia Herzi with The Little Sister, this program offers a rich panorama of forms and narratives, demonstrating the vitality, diversity, and enduring influence of French filmmaking today.A special thank you to our dedicated Film Selection Jury members:Florence Almozini (Senior Programming Director at Film at Lincoln Center), Delphine Selles Alvarez (Independent Film Curator), Farima Kone Kito (Founder of Petite Monsieur Agency), and Harris Dew (Senior VP & General Manager of IFC Center).
Albertine Cinémathèque is part of the French for All initiative by Villa Albertine and Albertine Foundation.
Albertine Cinémathèque is made possible by:Centre National du Cinema et de l’Image Animée (CNC)UNIFRANCE
Sandrine Neveux | Program Officer sandrine.neveux@villa-albertine.org