Festival de Cannes La Résidence

Fellowship · 2027Prestige 88/100

Four and a half months writing in a Paris apartment, free, if you are under 35 and not French.

Deadlines & fees

Application deadlineNext deadline
30 Sept 2026Europe/ParisFree

Dates and fees checked against the official site 8 Aug 2026.

Key facts

Formats: Feature
Not open to: France
Required materials: Online registration through the My Account portal · Treatment covering the project current development stage, in English or French only, minimum 10 pages · Synopsis · Statement of intent outlining the creative vision and the choice of plot · Mood board · CV · Proof of identity · Uploads of previous films, or viewing links

Open to filmmakers who have made one or several short films and no more than one feature. Applicants must be under 35 on the first day of the session, which for the 53rd session means 15 March 2027. Candidates must not be residents or citizens of France. The hardest gate is festival selection: the applicant's short films or first feature must have been selected for a Category A festival, and the English rules state no exceptions will be made. Applicants must be able to express themselves fluently in English or French, and must not have applied more than three times before. Co-directed or co-written projects are eligible but only one person from the team may attend, chosen at registration. The Festival reserves an exceptional right to select filmmakers who derogate from some criteria.

Prizes

Accommodation in a shared Paris apartment for the full four and a half months is provided, with no participation fee. Note carefully what the 5,000 euro CNC grant actually is: not a benefit of selection, but a competitive prize awarded by a three-person jury to one director from each session after a pitch in Cannes, so two of the twelve annual residents receive it. Several national film bodies including Telefilm Canada and the New Zealand Film Commission state that residents receive a grant of 800 euro a month, but this figure appears nowhere on any current Festival de Cannes page in English or French, so treat it as indicative rather than confirmed. Who pays travel is not addressed by any source.

Judging

The Festival de Cannes assesses every application and watches the films submitted, judging on the film-making potential shown in previous work, the quality of the treatment and the applicant's motivations. No named selection committee is published. The 5,000 euro CNC grant is decided separately by a jury of three film industry figures after residents pitch at the CNC pavilion in Cannes; the most recent published jury was Josephine Bourgeois, Sebastian Lelio and Jean-Christophe Simon. No feedback to unsuccessful applicants is offered or mentioned.

The PreList verdict

Four and a half months in a Paris apartment writing your first or second feature, with consultations alongside the work, forums with industry, a stay at the Moulin d'Ande, and a project booklet put in front of producers at Rotterdam, Locarno and Cannes. Six filmmakers a session, three male and three female. There is no participation fee and no published application fee. As a piece of institutional support for early-career writer-directors, nothing else in this directory matches it.

The honest part, and it corrects something widely repeated elsewhere: the 5,000 euro CNC grant is not a benefit of being selected. It is a competitive prize decided by a three-person jury after residents pitch in Cannes, and it goes to one director per session, so two of twelve a year. Several national film bodies also state residents receive 800 euro a month, but that figure appears nowhere on any current Cannes page in either language, and nobody states who pays your travel. The gates are steep too: under 35 on 15 March 2027, not French and not resident in France, and previous work selected for a Category A festival with the English rules saying no exceptions.

One thing worth knowing before you check your credits against that list. The English page names Lugano among its Category A festivals; the French page names Locarno. Locarno is the A-list Swiss festival, so the English version looks like a translation error, on a gate that supposedly admits no exceptions. If your qualifying selection was Locarno, apply anyway. Applications close on 30 September 2026, and no closing time is published, so do not leave it to the day.

Dylian Salvatore, Founder of The PreList · Updated 9 Aug 2026

Frequently asked questions

Do I get the 5,000 euro grant if I am selected?

Probably not, and this is widely misreported. The CNC grant is a competitive prize decided by a jury of three industry figures after residents pitch in Cannes, awarded to one director from each session. With six residents per session and two sessions a year, two of twelve receive it.

What does it cost?

Nothing published. There is no participation fee and no application fee appears on any official page, though the site never states in words that applying is free. Accommodation in Paris is provided for the whole residency. Who pays travel is not addressed anywhere, and a monthly allowance of 800 euro is reported by several national film bodies but appears on no current Cannes page.

Am I eligible?

You need one or several short films and no more than one feature, must be under 35 on 15 March 2027, and must not be a citizen or resident of France. Your previous work must have been selected for a Category A festival, and you must not have applied more than three times before.

The festival list mentions Lugano. Is that right?

Almost certainly not. The English rules list Lugano among Category A festivals while the French rules list Locarno, which is the A-list Swiss festival. It reads as a translation error on the English page. If your qualifying selection was Locarno, apply.

Is your script right for Festival de Cannes La Résidence?

Upload your screenplay and The PreList scores how well it fits this fellowship: genre, format, eligibility and readiness, before you spend anything.

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