Lumière Festival 2026

Claude Lelouch, Sixty Years After

A Man and a Woman

This morning, before the screening of A Man and a Woman (Un homme et une femme), 88-year-old French filmmaker Claude Lelouch stood before the audience at the Lumière Festival and jokingly declared:

“You are looking at a 26-year-old boy. I was 26 when I made this film.”

Sixty years have passed since the making of the film that transformed Lelouch’s career. As he recalled, it came after six films that had failed to find their audiences, at a moment when he was beginning to question whether he should continue making films at all.

He spoke about those difficult years, when he was deeply in debt and had little choice but to take considerable risks to bring the film to life.

“You cannot explain a miracle. This film had everything going for it. Before that, I had made six films that were not exactly failures, but they hadn’t found their audiences. I was beginning to wonder whether I was really cut out for this profession.”

Lelouch expressed his gratitude to Jean-Louis Trintignant and Anouk Aimée, the film’s two leading actors, recalling that they were the first stars to accept his invitation to work with him. Then, with his characteristic humour, he added:

“I can never thank enough all those who said no to me, because their refusals led me to the people who said yes.”

But perhaps the most thought-provoking part of his remarks concerned the significance of the Lumière Festival itself and the experience of returning to films we have already seen.

“Do you know why I love this festival? Because there are films we watch, and films we go back to watch again. And the ones we return to are the best films, just like the people we want to see again.”

He thanked Thierry Frémaux for creating a festival that allows audiences to rediscover beloved works from the history of cinema. He then offered a thought that might be one of the most beautiful expressions of the philosophy behind the Lumière Festival:

“The real critic is time.”

For Lelouch, films that survive the passing decades and continue to attract audiences reveal their lasting value through time itself. He was delighted that A Man and a Woman remains among those films people still wish to revisit, again and again.

In a moving moment, Lelouch remembered the collaborators who are no longer with us, including Anouk Aimée, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Pierre Barouh and Nicole Croisille.

“I hope that wherever they are, they too are happy to know that this morning, at eleven o’clock, people have still come to see this film.”

Reflecting on the 51 films he has made throughout his career, he offered a remarkable observation that perhaps reveals more about his relationship with cinema than any lengthy explanation could:

“I have made 51 films, but in reality, I have made only one film, at 51 different moments.”

Lelouch explained that his films have always reflected his observations, emotions and understanding of life at different stages of his journey.

He also spoke about his next project, a film exploring the contemporary world and the immense suspense facing humanity. As he described it, we now possess all the means either to create a better world or to accelerate our own destruction.

With a humorous reference to Alfred Hitchcock, he remarked:

“Now that Hitchcock is no longer here to make suspense films, I’ve decided to make a film myself about this great suspense that lies ahead of us.”

Yet, as his remarks drew to a close, Lelouch returned once more to his love of cinema.

He said that over the previous three days, seeing audiences leave screenings of his films with such happiness had made him feel as though he were living a dream.

“That is what cinema is for: to make people happy.”

Finally, before inviting the audience to rediscover A Man and a Woman, he offered one last reflection:

“Enjoy the present, because it is the only thing that belongs to us and has not grown old. And that is why cinema captures the present in such an extraordinary way.”

Then, with a smile, he said goodbye to the audience:

“I embrace you all, and perhaps we will meet again next year for new adventures.”

Narges Samadi

Film Critic & Festival Journalist

Lumière Festival | Lyon, France | October 15, 2026