Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Highlights Exciting 2026 Films from Renowned Directors
Kantemir Balagov’s drama Butterfly Jam, set in New Jersey and featuring Barry Keoghan and Riley Keough, will serve as the opening film of the 58th edition of Cannes Directors’ Fortnight.
The film is one of 19 features chosen from over 1,800 submissions, alongside nine short and medium-length films. The announcement was made on Tuesday, with the 2026 edition of Directors’ Fortnight scheduled to run from May 13 to 23, coinciding with the Cannes Film Festival.
Butterfly Jam tells the story of a teenager in New Jersey’s Circassian community with aspirations of becoming a wrestler. His life changes unexpectedly due to one of his father’s misguided schemes.
This marks Balagov’s first English-language feature following his breakout success with Beanpole at Cannes in 2019.
The film is produced by Alexander Rodnyansky’s AR Content, Pascal Caucheteux’s Why Not Productions, and Goodfellas, which is also managing sales.
Artistic Director Julien Rejl and his team have delivered one of the most notable lineups for Directors’ Fortnight since he assumed leadership in 2023.
In addition to Butterfly Jam, the selection includes Reed Van Dyk’s Atonement, featuring Kenneth Branagh, Hiam Abbass, and Boyd Holbrook; Arie Esiri and Chuko Esiri’s adaptation of Mrs. Dalloway titled Clarissa, starring Sophie Okonedo and David Oyelowo; and July Jung’s Dora, featuring Japanese actress Sakura Ando and K-pop star Kim Do-yeon.
Shot on 35mm film in Nigeria, Clarissa is the second feature by the Esiri brothers, whose debut Eyimofe (This Is My Desire) premiered in Berlin and received five African Movie Academy Awards.
Rejl, who previously focused on highlighting lesser-known filmmakers, appears to have shifted his strategy for this edition, incorporating works by established directors.
Noteworthy entries include Clio Barnard’s I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning, Radu Jude’s The Diary of a Chambermaid, Alain Cavalier’s Thanks for Coming (Merci d’être venu), and Quentin Dupieux’s Le Vertige.
I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning, adapted from Keiran Goddard’s book, stars Anthony Boyle and marks Barnard’s third appearance at Directors’ Fortnight, following Ava & Ali and The Selfish Giant.
Cavalier’s Thanks for Coming continues his reflective series on filmmaking as he ages, potentially concluding the career of the 94-year-old director.
Jude’s adaptation of Octave Mirbeau’s classic, starring Ana Dumitrascu, represents the Romanian director’s debut at Cannes.
A late submission, Lisandro Alonso’s Double Freedom revisits the character Misael from his 2001 film Freedom, set against a different backdrop in Argentina’s history.
Rejl noted at the announcement press conference in Paris that Dupieux’s Le Vertige was an unexpected late entry. The film is a 3D motion capture animation featuring the voices of Dupieux’s frequent collaborators, including Alain Chabbat and Anaïs Demoustier.
There remains a place for first-time filmmakers in the section, which featured the award-winning Iraqi drama The President’s Cake last year. This year’s lineup includes six debuts, including 9 Temples To Heaven by Thai director Sompot Chidgasornpongse.
Other first films include Atonement, Norwegian director Eivind Landsvik’s Low Expectations, and the documentaries Gabin by Maxence Voiseux and We Are Aliens by Kohei Kadowaki.
Second films in the lineup feature Chilean director Dominga Sotomayor’s trendsetting film La Perra, which stars Manuela Oyarzún, and Shana Pinell’s Shana, focusing on a woman grappling with personal dilemmas amid challenging circumstances.
As previously announced, the Directors’ Fortnight will honor Claire Denis with the prestigious Golden Carriage (Carrosse d’Or) during the opening ceremony on May 13.
Cannes Directors’ Fortnight 2026 Edition
Feature Films
(*denotes first film and eligibility for Caméra d’Or)
Butterfly Jam (opening film)
Dir: Kantemir Balagov
9 Temples To Heaven *
Dir: Sompot Chidgasornpongse
Atonement *
Dir: Reed Van Dyk
Clarissa
Dirs: Arie Esiri & Chuko Esiri
Death Has No Master (La muerte no tiene dueño)
Dir: Jorge Thielen Armand
The Diary of a Chambermaid
Dir: Radu Jude
Dora
Dir: July Jung
Double Freedom (La libertad doble)
Dir: Lisandro Alonso
Gabin * – documentary
Dir: Maxence Voiseux
I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning
Dir: Clio Barnard
Low Expectations (Lave Forventninger) *
Dir: Eivind Landsvik
Once Upon A Time In Harlem – documentary
Dirs: William Greaves & David Greaves
La Perra
Dir: Dominga Sotomayor
Shana
Dir: Lila Pinell
Thanks for Coming (Merci d’être venu) – documentary
Dir: Alain Cavalier
Too Many Beasts (l’Espèce Explosive) *
Dir: Sarah Arnold
Viva Carmen (Carmen, L’Oiseau Rebel) – animation
Dir: Sebastian Laundenbach
We Are Aliens (animation) *
Dir: Kohei Kadowaki
Le Vertige – animation (Closing Film)
Dir: Quentin Dupieux
Short and Medium-Length Films
The Joyless Economy – documentary
Dir: Marjorie Conrad
Oh Boys
Dir: Antonio Donato
Early Morning
Dir: Sebastián Lojo
Eri – animation
Dir: Yano Honami
Pithead
Dir: Wannes Vanspauwen & Pol De Plecker
The Daughters of the Late Colonel
Dir: Elizabeth Hobbs
Nothing Happens After Your Absence
Dir: Ibrahim Omar
Free Eliza (Notes On An Anatomical Imperfection)
Dir: Alexandra Matheou
In Search of the Green-striped Bird
Dir: Saïd Hamich Benlarb
