ACID’s Cannes picks

ACID, Cannes’ filmmaker-run parallel section, unveiled a 2026 lineup of nine features, with screenings set for May 13 to May 22. (deadline.com) The section will open with *Born Under a Bad Star* (*Mauvaise Étoile*), a French fiction debut by Lola Cambourieu and Yann Berlier set over 24 hours in the life of a young woman controlled by a violent partner. (deadline.com) ACID said 13 filmmakers watched several hundred submissions and chose nine titles, including six first features. Cannes’ city calendar says the 34th ACID edition runs alongside the festival from Wednesday, May 13, 2026, to Friday, May 22, 2026. (lacid.org) (cannes.com) The slate mixes fiction and documentary, which is how ACID has operated since its 1993 Cannes launch: a small, filmmaker-selected showcase built to help independent films reach buyers, theaters and audiences outside the main competition. (cannes.com) (hollywoodreporter.com) That role stands out in a Cannes year already crowded with established names. The festival’s official selection, announced April 9, includes Pedro Almodóvar, Asghar Farhadi, Hirokazu Kore-eda, Ira Sachs and László Nemes, with the 79th edition running May 12 to May 23. (festival-cannes.com) (screendaily.com) Two films drew early attention because their directors were born in Iran. One is Karim Lakzadeh’s clandestinely shot *Living Twice, Dying Thrice*, about three minors who survive a mine collapse and pretend to be dead so their families can claim compensation; the other is Mahsa Karampour’s documentary *Dans La Gueule de l’Ogre*. (deadline.com) (hollywoodreporter.com) Other international titles include *Summer Drift* (*Virages*), a Geneva-set hybrid work by Céline Carridroit and Aline Suter, and Ivan Marković’s Cambodia-shot drama *Promised Spaces*. Deadline also lists three documentaries in the selection: *A Secret Heart*, *Dans La Gueule de l’Ogre* and *Detention*. (deadline.com) Pauline Ginot, ACID’s general delegate, told *The Hollywood Reporter* that more than 600 films were submitted for the nine slots and said the group tries to send feedback even to filmmakers who are rejected. That process fits ACID’s structure as a filmmakers’ association rather than a programmer-led sidebar. (hollywoodreporter.com) ACID’s track record is part of the draw. Deadline and *The Hollywood Reporter* both note the section backed early work by Justine Triet, Kaouther Ben Hania and Radu Jude before those directors became Cannes regulars. (deadline.com) (hollywoodreporter.com) So while Cannes’ main competition will be dominated by returning auteurs, ACID arrives with a smaller list and a familiar promise: nine films, six debuts, and another round of discovery bets on the Croisette. (lacid.org) (deadline.com)