Guest of Honour: Gérard Jugnot
Mauvaise pioche
Gérard Jugnot
2026 / FRA / 1h32 / Age: 14 (16)
In the presence of Gérard Jugnot
Absurd misunderstanding, live 24/7
Serge Martin leads a peaceful retired life until the day he is mistaken for France’s most wanted man and arrested by mistake. Now the focus of media attention and caught up in a never-ending, absurd situation, he will do everything in his power to prove his innocence and regain his peace of mind. A satirical comedy featuring characters brimming with humanity, brought to life by the on-screen chemistry between Gérard Jugnot and Thierry Lhermitte.
Language: French
Subtitles: English
Starring: Gérard Jugnot, Philippe Lacheau & Thierry Lhermitte
Guest of Honour: Gérard Jugnot
Actor, director and screenwriter, Gérard Jugnot made his name with the Splendid theatre troupe. There, he created a gallery of characters who are grumpy, clumsy, cowardly or overwhelmed by events, often embodying the “average Frenchman”. His appearance, voice and acting style have helped make him an instantly recognisable face of French comedy. Over the years, his comic style has also enabled him to develop roles in which the burlesque blends with a great sensitivity.
One of the defining features of his cinema lies in this expression, which he himself uses: “ordinary characters confronted with extraordinary events”. He describes this way of observing the world and its absurdities, somewhere between laughter, drama and melancholy, as “sneering sociology”. This vision is evident in his own films, from Une époque formidable (1991), Monsieur Batignole (2002), or even his latest film, Mauvaise Pioche (2026), where Jugnot returns to this theme: a man caught up in a situation that is beyond his control.
Gérard Jugnot has been entertaining generations of filmgoers for over fifty years. The VIFFF is delighted to be able to honour this genius of comedy.