“Film festivals have to approach immersive works from an artistic perspective, beyond any fascination with technology” – Elie Levasseur (Cannes Film Festival)

For the second consecutive year, the Cannes Film Festival showcased a Competition featuring nine immersive works. A market dedicated to immersive creation as a whole was also launched. This ambitious program reflects the growing interest of film festivals in immersive media and highlights the vitality of a rapidly expanding international ecosystem. Elie Levasseur, head of the immersive selection at the Cannes Film Festival and the Marché du Film, reflects on this landmark edition and shares his vision for immersive storytelling.

Cover: LILI, by Navid Khonsari and Vassiliki Khonsari
Copyright ©️ Michaël Jan

What was the immersive program at this latest edition of the Cannes Film Festival?

Elie Levasseur – The 2025 edition was built around a selection of works in the Immersive Competition, accompanied by an Immersive Market that brought together professionals from around the world. Beyond the panel discussions, we organized one-on-one meetings between producers and curators—particularly those who don’t usually attend the Croisette. This included curators from major museum institutions in North America, Europe, and Asia who have recently begun exploring immersive formats. The goal was to bring together a diverse panel of players, ranging from digital arts to entertainment. In total, nearly 200 professionals and experts from the sector came to Cannes. The Festival aims to attract professionals who are rarely present in already well-established networks, such as that of digital arts—a field that, while structured, is now expressing a need for greater openness.

Let’s talk about the 2025 selection… What made these works stand out to you?

E.L. – The editorial line of the Immersive Competition is distinct from that of the Immersive Market. It follows a narrative approach that resonates with the DNA of the Cannes Film Festival. It highlights artists who are exploring new forms of storytelling and questioning narrative structures in the immersive age. The selection embraces a wide range of formats: hybrid works using virtual reality – such as LACUNA, In the Current of Being, The Exploding Girl VR, and The Dollhouse – as well as 360° environment experiences like Fillos do Vento: A RAPA. We wanted to present both individual and collective experiences. This formal and dramaturgical diversity is a central focus of the programming, because one of our core missions is to raise awareness among audiences about this narrative grammar. We pay particular attention to those—journalists, curators, institutional decision-makers—who are in direct contact with audiences or who hold curatorial or programming influence. Many stakeholders, including those involved in funding schemes, often have few opportunities to actually experience immersive works. Yet to support these forms meaningfully, one must first live them, feel them, and understand their inner mechanics.

How does immersive media differ from cinema?

E.L. – The works presented break free from the screen to immerse viewers in a spatial continuum. This shift from frame to space profoundly transforms the logic of creation: while cinema composes within a frame, immersive creation choreographs space. Another fundamental departure lies in interactivity. In several works from the selection, interactivity is not limited to simple technical manipulation—it enables a true dialogue between the user and the piece. This is especially true in tAxI, Lili, and Beyond The Vivid Unknown, where gestures and physical movement within the environment directly influence the unfolding of the narrative.

E.L. – Finally, I think it’s important to challenge the common notion that immersive artists are necessarily filmmakers. In reality, that’s far from the case. Alejandro González Iñárritu (notably the creator of Carne y Arena in 2017) stated that directors should not be the ones to take over this new territory, emphasizing that immersive art is an autonomous medium. It was a somewhat provocative stance, but one that raises important questions. Today, we’re seeing the emergence of artists from video games, visual arts, theatre, and cinema… but it’s likely that, in time, a new generation of immersive-native creators will fully claim this space as their own.

The growing interest in XR from film festivals—particularly those classified as category A—is becoming increasingly evident. What role can cinema play in the emergence of these new forms of storytelling?

E.L. – I deeply believe in a sensitive lineage between cinema and immersive creation. Historically, it seems to me that with immersive media, we find the same enthusiasm that accompanied the earliest film screenings. There is the same sense of wonder, but the technology is different.

The role of film festivals is to approach immersive works from an artistic perspective, beyond any fascination with technology. This also means deconstructing certain preconceived notions: immersive art is neither an extension of cinema nor its predetermined future. It is not a substitution, but rather the coexistence of two distinct languages. In the medium term, I believe there will be a coexistence of both types of works.

We are witnessing the emergence of a new narrative form — still imprecisely called ‘immersive art,’ a term too broad to capture the richness and diversity of the languages now unfolding through technology. As a jury, we were asked to engage with these bold, forward-looking voices and select one among them — never an easy task. We approached the works with the breadth of our varied perspectives and the shared sense of being part of a field that is still taking shape, but full of promise.

Luc Jacquet, Immersive Competition Jury President

In your view, is the rise of the XR industry comparable to that of cinema in its early days?

E.L. – This medium is still taking shape and, in many ways, echoes the early days of the film industry. Just as with cinema in the past, we are witnessing the emergence of a distribution network today. Efforts are being made to standardize formats and attract a wider audience, notably by involving well-known figures: Zar Amir stars in Lili, while Fanny Ardant lends her voice in Chez Moi (note: a non-competitive work).

Should we expect an explosion of immersive works in movie theaters?

E.L. – Dedicated venues for immersive works are already emerging (note: several projects awarded under the Culture Immersive and Metaverse call for projects, part of the France 2030 program and unveiled at this year’s Immersive Market, point in this direction). This represents a promising development. However, I see the evolution of this medium primarily as a spatial experience where audiences should be able to move and interact freely within the space. The layout of these venues will likely differ from what we know today. In any case, I remain convinced that immersion will prioritize collective experiences first and foremost. Last year, we exclusively presented multi-user works, which is a clear sign of growing enthusiasm for these collective forms.

So this confirms the rise of Location-Based Entertainment (LBE), then?

E.L. – The penetration rate of virtual reality headsets remains limited and primarily concerns “hardcore gamers.” However, the audiences receptive to the narrative forms presented in the immersive selection don’t necessarily fit this profile. This market reality leads us to consider the circulation of works primarily through LBE, outside private circles. At the same time, Europe has thousands of museums, which represent a major lever. The ecosystem includes enough committed players worldwide to ensure the distribution and sustainability of these immersive creations.

How do you envision the evolution of the festival’s approach to immersive media?

E.L. – For the first time, the Immersive Competition and Immersive Market fully coexist, forming two essential and complementary pillars. Going forward, we aim to further develop both aspects. Regarding formats, we are particularly satisfied with the quality of the selected works: nine projects in competition, chosen from nearly two hundred submissions, demonstrate a high level of excellence. However, there remains a slight frustration in having to exclude certain creations that require very large exhibition spaces. On the market side, the potential for expansion is still considerable. We invited sixty curators at our expense, which illustrates our commitment to opening up and energizing this sector. Another avenue could be to define editorial directions with strong stakes for the market.

Could this be a focus area entirely dedicated to AI?

E.L. – Artificial intelligence is a technology that the Cannes Film Festival and the Marché du Film have chosen to incorporate into their reflections. In the Immersive Competition, four projects already explore this dimension, such as tAxI, Beyond The Vivid Unknown, Lili, and From Dust (the Immersive Competition winner this year). The idea is to approach this theme comprehensively, either within a dedicated program or through a transversal approach. We observe that artists are already fully engaged with these questions, and we aim to foster this debate during our conferences. On the Marché du Film side, Guillaume Esmiol’s teams, particularly the Next program, show great responsiveness in technological monitoring, which will enrich our offering of specialized programs and conferences on the subject.

Will we see an immersive selection open to the general public?

E.L. – We are considering ways to open up to the general public. For now, the expectations expressed by producers primarily focus on the benefits linked to the presence of the Cannes Festival: the on-site attendance of curators, journalists, and policymakers is a key leverage. Our priority remains to address these three professional audiences. One avenue we are exploring for the future is to organize an international tour of the 2025 immersive selection, particularly within museums, under the Cannes Festival label. This would offer the public a high-quality curation while allowing the festival to generate new revenue. In our view, this strategy holds real potential to broaden public access to immersive works.

The environmental impact of digital technologies and XR is well known—how can the Cannes Film Festival reconcile these new artistic formats with ethical concerns?

(Note: see the articles XR + Ecology = 404 Error? / How can we structure an eco-responsible supply chain for XR?)

E.L. – It seems essential to me that the environmental issue is not limited to our conferences but also permeates our concrete practices. It is not about viewing technology as a solution to the ecological crisis, but rather moving beyond a posture of fascination with technology. We can appreciate how these tools stimulate new forms of creativity while remaining responsible in our usage. This requires collective reflection: what practices are truly virtuous? Immersive works cannot simply thematize the environment; the message alone is not enough—we must also question the very conditions of their production and distribution. This is an area we will actively work on.

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