For its 2026 edition, Cinéma sous les étoiles is celebrating women directors with a program entitled Regards féminins. From August 7 to 20, across twelve municipalities in the metropolitan area, the festival invites audiences to discover, under the open sky, works that have shaped the history of cinema and transformed how we see the world. From Alice Guy, a pioneer of narrative cinema with La Fée aux choux, to Kelly Reichardt, Jane Campion, Lotte Reiniger, Mounia Meddour, Justine Triet, Greta Gerwig and Chloé Zhao, this edition spans eras, genres and sensibilities. Animation, drama, documentary, comedy and genre cinema: together, the selected films create a journey that is accessible, thought-provoking and socially engaged. While retaining the welcoming atmosphere that defines Cinéma sous les étoiles, this edition embraces a bolder program shaped by major contemporary issues: feminism, power dynamics, the body, sexuality, violence and emancipation. These films raise questions and sometimes challenge audiences, but above all create a space for sharing, curiosity and collective reflection. The festival will also feature its signature events: a family evening with Les Aventures du prince Ahmed, Lotte Reiniger's animated masterpiece, an evening of short films, and, for the first time, a Femgore evening centered on The Substance, a chilling and hypnotic body-horror film about the obsession with perfection and the transformation of the body, for mature audiences only. Each evening will begin with a live performance: music, clowning, acrobatics or hybrid art forms will extend the experience beneath the stars. Food trucks, drinks, ice cream and local food will accompany these summer evenings dedicated to cinema, connection and sharing. Free admission, subject to availability In municipalities across the Métropole: performance at 8 p.m. - Film at 9:30 p.m. Beaulieu | Castries | Clapiers | Fabrègues | Grabels | Lattes | Le Crès | Restinclières | Saint-Drézéry | Saint-Geniès-des-Mourgues | Saint-Georges-d'Orques | Sussargues Full program coming online soon
Event from the official Montpellier calendar; venue: Office de Tourisme Montpellier; address: CINÉMA SOUS LES ÉTOILES, 34000, Montpellier.
Source: Agenda Montpellier