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Gaumont announces special retrospective with Academy Museum of Motion Pictures for 130th Anniversary

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French powerhouse studio Gaumont, currently celebrating its 130th Anniversary, has announced that in celebration of its century plus years of cinematic excellence, the studio has partnered with the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles for a special retrospective through its film history and enduring legacy of one of cinema’s founding studios. As part of this retrospective, 12 bespoke features and one grouping of 12 short films from Gaumont’s extensive library of 1,600 titles, with one program per decade each representing a key moment in the company’s 130 years, will be screened throughout a one-month period at the Academy Museum.  This series will kick off on September 11th with an invitation only cocktail event and screening of Gaumont’s highly regarded 1967 film Weekend by Jean-Luc Godard and starring Mireille Darc and Jean Yanne. Sidonie Dumas, Gaumont’s CEO, Nicolas Atlan, President of Gaumont US and SPLATAM, and Amy Homma, Academy Museum Director and President, will headline the evening.

The retrospective, which spans more than a century and affirms the richness and vitality of Gaumont’s artistic legacy, was programmed in close collaboration with the Academy’s teams, with a shared ambition to present cinema not as a museum object, but as a living, breathing force. The result is a collection of 12 features and one grouping of 12 short films that speak to cinephiles and professionals alike.

The films and dates for this remarkable retrospective include:

  1. Weekend (9/11) – Jean-Luc Godard’s experimental radicalism
  2. The Earrings of Madame de… (9/12) – Max Ophüls’ romantic poetic mastery
  3. The Murderer Lives at Number 21 (9/13) – Henri-Georges Clouzot’s suspenseful blend of mystery and dark humor
  4. The Taste of Things (9/15) – A sensuous celebration of love, life and culinary art in 19th-century France, starring Juliette Binoche and Benoît Magimel.
  5. The Passion of Joan of Arc (9/17) – A spiritual and visual milestone
  6. OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies (9/19) – A witty, satirical spy comedy
  7. Fantômas (9/20) – An iconic classic that helped shape early filmmaking
  8. Querelle (9/22) – Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s stylized and provocative classic
  9. Pioneers of the Screen: Gaumont and the Origins of Motion Pictures (9/28) – A journey through cinema’s first steps, with silent shorts by Alice Guy-Blaché and Émile Cohl, accompanied live by Michael Mortilla.
  10. L’Atalante in 4K (10/2) – Jean Vigo’s poetic ode to love and life on the waterways of France
  11. Don Giovanni (10/5) – Joseph Losey’s visually sumptuous Mozart adaptation, where opera meets cinema
  12. See You Up There (10/8) – Albert Dupontel’s flamboyant anti-war fable set in post-WWI France, blending satire and visual spectacle
  13.  Van Gogh (10/11) – Maurice Pialat’s intimate and unsentimental portrait of the artist’s final days

“We are honored to be partnering with the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, the largest museum in the world dedicated to global cinema and the arts, sciences and artists of moviemaking, on this extraordinary retrospective. The museum’s dedication to preserving and celebrating the art of cinema aligns perfectly with our mission at Gaumont to support innovation and storytelling in all its forms. This collaboration, which reflects the evolution of cinema itself, offers a rare opportunity to reflect on the legacy of our films and inspire future generations of filmmakers and film lovers alike,” commented Dumas.

Added Atlan, “This collaboration with the Academy Museum allows Gaumont US to celebrate our legacy while spotlighting our evolution with our friends and partners. For over 130 years, Gaumont has shaped cinematic history—and today, we continue that journey as a global producer, a launchpad for visionary talent, and a creative house deeply attuned to the stories of our time.”

“The Academy Museum is proud to partner with Gaumont, whose history dates back to the very beginnings of the film industry, and for 130 years, has brought unforgettable stories to audiences around the world,” said Homma. “This collaboration not only honors their legacy but also reflects the museum’s ongoing dedication to celebrating cinema and making filmmaking accessible across generations and cultures.”