Deauville American Film Festival


The Deauville American Film Festival: The birth of an internationally renowned event
André Halimi and Lionel Chouchan dreamed of organizing an American Film Festival… Michel d’Ornano — Mayor of Deauville and Lucien Barrière — CEO of the Lucien Barrière Group — were looking for a way to attract tourists to Deauville beyond the summer season… These four illustrious characters were made to get along! In 1975, the Deauville American Film Festival was born.
The creation of the HOMAGE section attracted the first American celebrities. This “star catcher”, as Lionel Chouchan called it, allowed Gregory Peck, Vincente Minnelli and Sydney Pollack to roll out the red carpet in 1977… The dream of a world-renowned festival became a reality in Deauville, on the Côte Fleurie in Normandy.
“Hollywood has found an orchard in Normandy,” Anne d’Ornano sums up nicely.
The Festival inaugurates its Palais des Festivals
The CID Deauville Convention Center is built between the Normandy Hotel, the Barrière Casino and the sea. To preserve the beauty of the waterfront, its structure is mostly located below sea level. To achieve this architectural feat, 160,000 m³ of sand were extracted, so that the glass roof of the convention center does not exceed 3.50m in height. 18,000m² of spaces entirely dedicated to the organization of professional events were designed: meeting rooms, exhibition halls, auditoriums, multi-purpose spaces… To give life to events from 60 to 5,000 participants.
On September 5, 1992, festival-goers flocked to the doors of the Michel d’Ornano auditorium at the Palais des Congrès. Many American celebrities were present, led by Clint Eastwood, to inaugurate the Centre International de Deauville.

“The CID Deauville is like an ocean liner with only the superstructure protruding”. Patrick Le Gosles, Architect of the CID Deauville

The cabins of the Deauville Boardwalk, symbols of a legendary festival
Since the 1990s, the names of the most famous actors and directors invited to the Deauville American Film Festival have been painted on the lices of the cabins along the promenade des Planches. Each year, the honored celebrities inaugurate their cabins on the beach, a symbolic moment that links them to the City of Deauville. As you stroll along the 643 meters of the Planches de Deauville, you will be able to read no less than 200 names of the biggest stars who came to the Deauville American Film Festival.
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The Deauville American Film Festival: Open to professionals and the general public
Independent cinema and the revelation of talent
The Deauville American Film Festival is first and foremost a love affair with independent cinema and festival-goers. It is still the only European festival of this scale to open its doors to the public for 10 days of cinema. Each year, more than sixty productions are presented to the public, on the three screening sites:
- Deauville Congress Center ;
- Casino cinema ;
- the Morny Deauville cinema.
The City of Deauville delegates the co-organization of the Deauville American Film Festival to the Centre International de Deauville (spaces, technical aspects, reception of festival-goers…) and to the LPSC agency, Le Public Système Cinéma (artistic programming and scenography).
An edition of the Festival in a few figures
- 60 000 festival-goers
- 60 previews
- 3 000 students



Companies also have their own Festival !
Every year, 3,000 VIP Corporate Passes walk the red carpet at this major film event in Normandy. This formula allows companies to build loyalty among their partners, clients and employees by offering them an exceptional evening at the CID Deauville.
The program of an evening in PASS VIP company
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VIP welcome
Personalized welcome at the VIP area of the Deauville American Film Festival -
Red Carpet and Cocktail
Red Carpet Access and Champagne Cocktail on the Terraces of the Deauville Convention Center -
Preview of a film
Screening in a reserved place in the Michel d’Ornano auditorium, in the presence of talents, juries and guests of the Festival.