Bet You’ll Fall in Love with This Romantic Comedy!

Throughout the week, AlloCiné invites you to explore some of the 2025 comedies through the selection at the Alpe d’Huez Festival. The Comedy Film Festival in Isère, now in its 28th year, features a mix of both debut feature films and discoveries, as well as works from more established directors.

Spotlight on Avignon, the first feature film by Johann Dionnet.

From Alpe d’Huez to Avignon… Yesterday, the Comedy Festival showcased a film directed by an actor, screenwriter, and director who is one of the personalities “born” at Alpe d’Huez. Johann Dionnet has been attending the festival for over a decade; initially as a short film actor, before revealing his own films, including the short “I Play Rodrigue” which became the feature film Avignon.

Avignon, as the title suggests, is set in the city of the same name, renowned for its annual theater festival. The film cleverly captures a slice of life from a theater company during the bustling festival.

The storyline intertwines romantic comedy and ensemble comedy. The result is a film with a compelling plot, full of twists and with endearing, and in some cases quite charming, characters. Stéphane and his troupe arrive at the Avignon Festival to perform “My Sister Crashes,” a boulevard theater piece. There, he re-encounters Fanny, a rising actress performing in a classic, and falls for her. Under a misunderstanding, she believes he is playing Rodrigue, the lead role in the prestigious “Le Cid” by Corneille. To win her over, Stéphane sinks into a lie that he must sustain throughout the festival… but soon finds overwhelming.

The film perfectly captures the extraordinary energy and atmosphere of these places at this time. “The first time I came to the Avignon Festival, I was blown away,” shares director and screenwriter Johann Dionnet. “I was overwhelmed because I didn’t think I’d feel so much emotion in just a few days, since you obviously spend your day going to see shows. There are 1,500 shows, so you can’t see everything.”

The Avignon Festival is like a colorful anthill

“I’ve been to shows where I laughed a lot, others where I cried a lot, all in the same day. The weather is nice, it’s warm. There are always people in the street handing out flyers, explaining what they’re doing. There are parades, people in costumes, musicians… It’s like a colorful anthill that hits you hard over three days. The first time I came, I was just a festival-goer and I thought I absolutely had to do the Avignon Festival one day.”

Dionnet later performed there as an actor, before making it the setting for his first feature film, which he partly shot during the event in July 2024.

He continues: “What’s funny is that most of the time, when actors say they’re doing Avignon, they’re tired of going, but when they’re not there, they think: Damn, I’m not in Avignon this summer. Because it feels like, for the theater community, it’s kind of the place to be. Like when you go to Cannes or you do a big film festival, it’s nice to be there.”

Dionnet adds: “It’s not just a romantic comedy, it’s also an ensemble comedy. I grew up, like everyone else, I think, watching films from Le Splendid. I love ensemble comedies, group comedies. I think they’re great. And in Avignon, you’re together for 30 days. So naturally, it creates bonds and makes a little family. I thought it was very well suited to an ensemble comedy, a group comedy.”

Besides the very successful group dynamic, Avignon is a charming romantic comedy. It features very endearing actors, from Baptiste Lecaplain to Alison Wheeler, and Elisa Erka. Avignon does not yet have a release date in theaters. The film is expected to be released in spring – summer 2025.

A 28th Edition Marked by Debuts

Founded in 1997, the Alpe d’Huez Festival takes place, as its name suggests, in the eponymous winter sports resort. Located at 1800 meters above sea level in the heart of Isère, the area has been welcoming thousands of festival-goers for nearly three decades, allowing them to discover each year the big upcoming titles in comedy cinema. Launched last January 13, the 28th edition of the festival is in full swing: screenings, meetings, and signings are on the agenda for this week dedicated to debuts. Among the ten feature films in competition, seven are first-time directorial efforts, including “Love is Overrated.”