What are your favourite film festivals'

I go to Berlin, Cannes, Pusan and those that I organise. (Deauville's festival programmer) Jerome Lasserre goes to Sundance. I prefer Cannes.

What's the blueprint for a good festival'

A welcoming town where everything can be done on foot, a policy of assuming cultural choices, a demanding artistic management, an economy that has the talent of its ambitions. And a lot of luck.

Which films have you enjoyed recently'

There Will Be Blood by Paul Thomas Anderson, Il Divo by Paolo Sorrentino, In Love We Trust by Wang Xiaoshuai, Changeling by Clint Eastwood, Waltz With Bashir by Ari Folman.

Who are the talents to watch'

Paolo Sorrentino, Charlie Kaufman, Park Chan-wook, Brillante Mendoza. Each of them has the auteurish capacity to reinvent cinema with each take.

What have you personally brought to Deauville'

An eclectic cinema that pushes the limits while conserving a radical editorial line in my choices. A fierce will to love and to heal more than to punish and exclude.

Is there a film which you are proud to have helped French audiences discover'

I have an affection for The Bridges Of Madison County which brought together all the things I love in film: generosity, love, intelligent talent, tears and desire.

What are you looking forward to most this year'

The awards, the barometer of the success or failure of the festival. Each year there are two things left over from a festival, its catalogue which is its memory, and its awards which are its future.