Lux Aeterna

With Lux Aeterna, Gaspar Noé delivers a work that once again pushes the boundaries of conventional cinema. Screened as the opening film of the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, the film doesn't tell a classic story, but immerses the viewer in an intense visual and auditory experience.

Starring Charlotte Gainsbourg and Béatrice Dalle, the film presents itself as a meta-reflection on the filmmaking process, the tensions between actors and crew, and the fragility of artistic creation. Rather than a plot, it's a succession of scenes on a film set, punctuated by arguments, anxieties, and dialogues about cinema.

Noé's style, true to his reputation, is radical and immersive: stroboscopic lighting, rapid editing, and amplified sound make Lux Aeterna a truly sensory experience. The viewer is thus placed in an almost hypnotic state, sometimes disoriented, often confronted with the intensity of perception itself.

Critical reception was mixed: some praised the film as a bold and experimental work, while others found it incomprehensible or pretentious. But beyond the controversy, Lux Aeterna confirms Gaspar Noé's ability to question the viewer about the nature of cinema and the role of emotion and sensation in art.

In summary, Lux Aeterna is not a film that one simply watches: it is an experience to be lived, sensory and provocative, which leaves no one indifferent.


Technical specifications


  • Original title: Lux Aeterna
  • Director: Gaspar Noé
  • Stage: Gaspar Noé
  • Production: Gaspar Noé (Les Cinémas de la Zone, Les Films du Lendemain, etc.)
  • Music: Electro / experimental (several original tracks, immersive sound editing)
  • Photography: Gaspar Noé (Director of Photography)
  • Editing: Gaspar Noé
  • Country: France
  • Language: French
  • Duration: 51 minutes
  • Genre: Experimental, Meta-cinema
  • Format: Color, strobe, digital
  • Release date: May 17, 2019 (Cannes Film Festival)
  • Main actors:
  • Charlotte Gainsbourg
  • Béatrice Dalle
  • Gaspar Noé (appearance / role as director)
  • Distribution: Les Cinémas de la Zone
  • Special features:
  • An ultra-experimental film, mixing strobes, pulsed light, and psychedelic editing.
  • No classic scenario, a meta-reflective approach to the filming of a movie
  • Designed to create a sensory and immersive experience