The Europe by Europe<\/strong> festival was born in 2006<\/strong>, under the impetus of filmmaker Irena Bili\u0107<\/span>, with a clear objective: to create a bridge between European auteur<\/strong> cinemas in all their diversity.<\/p>\nAt the time, few festivals in France offered programming specifically dedicated to the European continent as a whole<\/strong>, focusing on independent auteurs<\/strong>, countries with low production capacity<\/strong>, singular voices<\/strong> or the importance of continuity in European cinema<\/strong>, from the pioneers through the classics to contemporary cinema.<\/p>\nFrom the outset, the festival has been part of an artistic, cultural and political approach<\/strong> : defending cinema as an art of freedom, memory, language and the encounter between peoples<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>From Normandy to Paris: an upward trajectory<\/span><\/h3><\/div>The first edition of the festival, then called the Southeastern European Independent Film Fair<\/strong>, was held in Normandy (Bernay, \u00c9vreux, Moulin d\u2019And\u00e9). It was produced by Art Gothique Tendre – Evropa Film Akt, an association founded by filmmaker Irena Bilic and artist Nenad Zilic. The screenings were intimate, the discussions lively, and the reception enthusiastic.<\/p>\nIn 2008<\/strong>, in response to growing demand, the festival moved to Paris<\/strong>, while occasionally maintaining regional branches (\u00c9vreux, Rouen, Le Havre, Lisieux, Pont-Audemer…). Since the 2013<\/strong> edition, screenings have taken place in Paris and \u00cele-de-France (L’Entrep\u00f4t Cinema, the Saint-Andr\u00e9 des arts, Filmoth\u00e8que du Quartier Latin, Grand Action, the J\u00e9r\u00f4me Seydoux-Path\u00e9 Foundation, M\u00e9li\u00e8s, Christine 21, Eden, Atalante, Studio des Ursulines, Louis Lumi\u00e8re School, Balzac, Path\u00e9 Les Fauvettes…).<\/p>\nThis change of territory marks a strategic turning point<\/strong>: Paris becomes the beating heart of the festival, with roots in renowned art house venues<\/strong>, foreign cultural centers<\/strong>, university venues<\/strong>, and international partners<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>A strong editorial line : defending European auteur cinema<\/span><\/h3><\/div>From the very first editions, the festival has asserted a unique vision<\/strong> :<\/p>\n\n- Giving a voice to non-national European films<\/strong>,<\/li>\n
- Highlighting countries that are underrepresented in commercial circuits<\/strong>,<\/li>\n
- Create continuity between the masters of the 7th art and the next generation<\/strong>,<\/li>\n
- Cross artistic, historical, political and philosophical perspectives<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
![\"20th](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-about-history-photos-006.jpg\" "\\"festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-about-history-photos-006\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>Each year, a strong theme<\/strong> guides the programming: a common thread allowing for dialogue between the works<\/strong> and offering critical reflection<\/strong> on our times.<\/p>\n\n- 2009<\/strong> : New perspectives on love and war.<\/li>\n
- 2010<\/strong> : Freedom and dependencies.<\/li>\n
- 2011<\/strong> : Heroes and Antiheroes.<\/li>\n
- 2012<\/strong> : Silence and noise.<\/li>\n
- 2013<\/strong> : Memory and Becoming.<\/li>\n
- 2014<\/strong> : Light and Darkness.<\/li>\n
- 2015<\/strong> : Body and soul.<\/li>\n
- 2016<\/strong> : Chaos and Harmonies.<\/li>\n
- 2017<\/strong> : Migration exists. Death does not.<\/li>\n
- 2018<\/strong> : Borders.<\/li>\n
- 2019<\/strong> : Animals and Mens.<\/li>\n
- 2020<\/strong> : Animals, mens, machines, robots.<\/li>\n
- 2021<\/strong> : Bodies in motion.<\/li>\n
- 2022<\/strong> : Black and white.<\/li>\n
- 2023<\/strong> : Portraits, landscapes, world.<\/li>\n
- 2024<\/strong> : Faces of men, faces of history.<\/li>\n
- 2025<\/strong> : Tell Me Lies \u2013 in tribute to Peter Brook.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
An architecture in constant expansion<\/span><\/h3><\/div>Over the years, the festival has structured its program around major sections<\/strong> :<\/p>\n\n- Official competitions<\/strong> :\n
\n- \ud83c\udfc6 Prix SAUVAGE<\/strong> (feature-length fiction film)<\/li>\n
- \ud83d\udcfd\ufe0f Prix PRESENT<\/strong> (documentary)<\/li>\n
- \ud83c\udf9e\ufe0f Prix SAUVAGE CORTO<\/strong> (short film)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- Young Jury Prizes<\/strong> :\n
\n- \u2b50 Prix LUNA<\/strong> (young professionals)<\/li>\n
- \ud83d\udc3a Prix LUPETO<\/strong> (European students)<\/li>\n
- \u2728 Prix E-MOTION<\/strong> (young people of the European Movement)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- Non-competitive sections<\/strong> :\n
\n- \ud83c\udfac THEMA<\/em> (theme of the year)<\/li>\n
- \ud83c\udf3f Wildlife<\/em> (films related to ecological issues)<\/li>\n
- \ud83e\uddea Experimental Salon<\/em> (research cinema)<\/li>\n
- \ud83c\udf0d Connections<\/em> (international collaborations)<\/li>\n
- \ud83e\udd1d Meetings and events<\/em> (signings, masterclasses, debates…)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Each edition is also punctuated by tributes to great filmmakers<\/strong>, national retrospectives<\/strong> and carte blanche<\/strong> to renowned programmers and critics.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>![\"Trophies](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-about-history-photos-007.jpg\" "\\"festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-about-history-photos-007\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>A stage for invisible voices<\/span><\/h3><\/div>The festival has always been keen to provide visibility :<\/p>\n
\n- To authors from French overseas territories<\/strong>,<\/li>\n
- To minority filmmakers<\/strong>,<\/li>\n
- To films on issues of gender, migration, colonial memory<\/strong>,<\/li>\n
- In rare languages<\/strong>, often not widely spoken.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
It has shown films in Albanian, Nenets, Armenian, Finnish, Turkish, Greek, Norwegian, etc.<\/strong>, with significant translation and subtitling work<\/strong> each year.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>![\"Isabelle](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2024-isabelle-huppert.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"Albert](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2024-albert-serra.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"Istv\u00e1n](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2017-istvan-szabo.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"Aleksandr](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2025-aleksandr-balagura.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"Anja](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2016-anja-breien.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"Le](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2016-carlos-saura.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"Le](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2016-hans-jurgen-syberberg.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"La](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2025-frida-kempff.jpeg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"Jean](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2012-jean-douchet.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li>![\"Pierre-Henri](\"https:\/\/www.evropafilmakt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/festival-film-europeen-leurope-autour-de-leurope-website-guest-2015-pierre-henri-deleau.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/span><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Guests of honor who have marked the history of the festival<\/span><\/h3><\/div>Over the years, the festival has welcomed major figures from European cinema<\/strong>, such as :<\/p>\n\ud83c\udfa5 Agn\u00e8s Varda, Carlos Saura, Istv\u00e1n Szab\u00f3, Eug\u00e8ne Green, Ralitza Petrova, Albert Serra, Isabelle Huppert, Jean-Claude Carri\u00e8re, M\u00e1rta M\u00e9sz\u00e1ros, Jonas Mekas, Krzysztof Zanussi, Roy Andersson, Anja Breien, Ildik\u00f3 Enyedi,<\/strong> etc.<\/p>\nEach jury president<\/strong> leaves a mark, embodying the diversity of European sensibilities.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>