The Hidden Pleasures of the Deauville American Film Festival

Nestled among the picturesque seaside towns on France’s blustery northern coast is an unsuspecting place called Deauville.

The chocolate-box suburb, around a two-hour drive from Paris, is no ordinary Normandy beach — for nine days of the year it’s the beating heart of American culture in the unlikeliest of places.

Here, U.S. flags hang proudly outside every shop and restaurant, gaggles of fans wait outside the luxurious five-star L’Hôtel Barrière Le Normandy Deauville hoping to catch a glimpse of Pamela Anderson (one of this year’s honorary recipients), and names such as Clint Eastwood, George Clooney, Sharon Stone and Nicole Kidman line the town’s notorious boardwalk, adorned with the hundreds of stars celebrated over the last 50 years. Forget Cannes, Venice or TIFF: this is the Deauville American Film Festival, and it’s the chicest event on the calendar.

Below, The Hollywood Reporter reveals five highlights from this year’s edition; the hidden pleasures of a fest you never knew existed.

1. Dine With America’s Biggest Stars

“I do not and will never feed into PR stunts — that would be a death sentence,” said Pamela Anderson from the stage of the festival’s main venue, the Deauville Convention Center. The Naked Gun actress was referring to recent rumors about her relationship with co-star Liam Neeson while picking up the Deauville Talent Award, also given to Australian actor Joel Edgerton this year.

“I am authentically driven. I am superstitious when it comes to love, and I’m not comfortable sharing any shred of my romantic life. … For as you can see, it is only built up and torn down in days in a media culture that is quick to judge and ruin it,” the Baywatch alum continued. “I know I will fall in love again and again onscreen… [But] do not mistake my kindness for weakness or my boldness for bitterness.”

This kind of candor is only possible at an intimate fest like Deauville. Anderson was the picture of glamour in a form-fitting, strapless black dress, lighting up the room at the post-ceremony gala, too. She could be seen sitting at the room’s center while tables around it were supplied with unlimited bottles of France’s finest Champagne and wine. A three-course meal was provided to guests at the luxe location, the Casino Barrière Deauville, draped in red velvet and towering candles.

After Anderson’s speech came the opening night film: Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin’s marriage comedy Splitsville with Dakota Johnson and Adria Arjona. The co-writers circulated the casino, fielding a wave of congratulatory remarks from the writers, producers and fellow filmmakers that made up the exclusive guest list. Iranian-French actress Golshifteh Farahani, heading up this year’s jury, was also in attendance to receive the Digital Distinction Award.

2. Stay at France’s Most Fashionable Hotels

Beat the jet lag and make a stop in Paris at the five-star Hôtel Barrière Fouquet’s, just off the city’s world-renowned shopping avenue, the Champs-Élysées. Minutes away from the Arc de Triomphe, the hotel is recognized as a cultural hot spot in the city of love: a historic monument since 1990 where recent guests have included Quentin Tarantino, Jodie Foster, Sean Penn and Brad Pitt.

The elegant design of each room is a match for the hotel’s neighboring facilities: a sauna, steam room and lagoon-style pool make up the spa, and the famous Brasserie Fouquet’s sits just next door, offering a taste of the city’s best food. Signature restaurant Le Joy and speakeasy Le Marta downstairs provide trendy alternatives.

Once Deauville comes into view, there’s a wealth of options to consider but perhaps nothing rivals L’Hôtel Barrière Le Normandy Deauville, where many celebrities set up camp for the run of the festival. Described by architect Théo Petit as having “an Anglo-Norman cottage charm,” the building looms over the waterfront, each of its 269 rooms decorated with a unique sense of country class.

The Spa Diane Barrière offers every possible treatment to keep one relaxed throughout the festival and the hotel restaurant La Belle Époque serves up fresh seafood alongside traditional French cuisine. The cosy, library-style Bar du Normandy provides some of Deauville’s best cocktails, but there’s much more than that: L’Hôtel Barrière Hôtel du Golf and L’Hôtel Barrière Le Royal are minutes away by foot and car, the former boasting padel, tennis and, of course, a scenic 18 holes of golf across an expansive course.

3. Enjoy Powerful American Cinema

You may have guessed from the name, but this festival celebrates the relationship between French and American culture — and how cinema sits at the intersection. Splitsville kicked off the fest but it’s not the only Cannes-premiering U.S. production to also screen in Deauville: Richard Linklater’s Nouvelle Vague, emblematic of the best of French-American cinema, follows Jean-Luc Godard’s making of his 1960 film Breathless.

Kelly Reichardt’s The Mastermind, starring Josh O’Connor as an amateur art thief in ’70s Massachusetts, also hit the film festival, alongside Kristen Stewart’s directorial debut The Chronology of Water, Scarlett Johansson’s first turn in the filmmaker’s chair Eleanor the Great and Joshua Oppenheimer’s dystopian musical The End. Among the buzzier titles was Yorgos Lanthimos’ most recent feature hot off the Venice carpet: Bugonia with Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons.

And it wasn’t just Anderson or Edgerton on the receiving end of great honors. Nouvelle Vague star Zoey Deutsch picked up the fest’s Hollywood Rising Star award. But Kim Novak shone brightest as she accepted Deauville’s Icon Award. The event screened the 92-year-old’s biggest hits including Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo (1958) and Richard Quine’s Bell, Book and a Candle (1958). “Far from the female stereo­types shaped by the indus­try, she assert­ed her indi­vid­u­al­i­ty through a raw, instinc­tive per­for­mance style,” the festival said of the actress-turned-artist Novak. “Long mis­un­der­stood by crit­ics, her body of work is now rec­og­nized as that of a bold and for­ward-think­ing actress.” In a rare public appearance, Novak took to the Deauville stage with French choreographer Benjamin Millepied to accept the honor.

4. Saddle Up for an Iconic Beach Ride

Deauville’s flat, sandy beach is dappled with brightly-colored umbrellas, beachside bottle service and local sunbathers, but there’s one more experience to tick off before you leave and that’s a sunset horse ride.

There’s no shortage of beautiful horses here: the town is famed for its races and polo matches and has, for 160 years, hosted the biggest events in Europe at the Deauville-La Touques racecourse. Enormous names come to watch world-best horses, jockeys and trainers at a myriad of events, solidifying the countryside in and around Deauville as the main horse-breeding region in France.

Nearby, at one of the numerous stud farms in the area, you can claim your own horse and take a gentle stroll along the sand. It’s a sight you’ll become accustomed to: visitors, some guests of the film festival, trying to get the perfect selfie atop horses as the sun sets on Deauville.

5. Shop and Eat at Celebrity Hotspots

Away from the promenade are rows of designer shops for those inclined to splurge. Luxury department store Printemps neighbors L’Hôtel Barrière Le Normandy Deauville, but there’s more where that came from: Louis Vuitton, Longchamp, Dior and Hermès are just some of the labels readily available at a moment’s notice. For budget-friendly options, the Marché de Deauville opens on a Saturday under the open-air, half-timbered halls on the Place du Marché where tourists are welcome to pick up jewelry, clothes, bags, art and furniture, as well as fresh fruit and vegetables.

For lunch and dinner, the beachside Bar de la Mer is a staple of the Deauville American Film Festival. The restaurant first opened in 1948 and continues to serve as a chic haven from the coastal winds. Highlights on the menu include linguine with clams, lobster rolls and mussels served in a variety of sauces — white wine, creamy, Provençal or with Camembert dressing, as well as ice cream, churros or pancakes for dessert. Just next door is Italian venue Ciro’s, renovated only last year. In 2025, Air France chose Ciro’s as its venue for a lavish dinner with the fest’s biggest talent (French superstar Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu was among those hosted), who tucked into grilled white fish and dressed vegetables.

The 2025 Deauville American Film Festival runs through Sunday.