The Vanity Fair France Literary Prize returned for its second edition at the Peninsula Hotel, recognizing literature with narrative qualities suitable for cinema and streaming platforms. This initiative, in collaboration with Mediawan, Netflix, and Montblanc, aims to highlight stories that could transform from written words into visual storytelling.
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On October 15th, a jury gathered at an intimate dinner to deliberate on the awards, with the winners set to be announced on November 2nd. This year, nine works were shortlisted across three categories: novel, graphic novel, and non-fiction. The selected works showcase a variety of themes ranging from personal journeys to historical accounts and contemporary issues.
The jury for the 2026 edition was chaired by Florian Zeller, a prominent writer and director, alongside Olivier Bouchara from Vanity Fair and investigative journalist Hugo Wintrebert. Additional jury members included novelist Anne Berest, Netflix’s Vice President of Content Pauline Dauvin, screenwriters Olivier Demangel and Arthur Dreyfus, Mediawan Pictures Managing Director Elisabeth d’Arvieu, artist and actor Fianso, actress Rebecca Marder, and director Carine Tardieu.
Nominees for the novel category included David Djaïz with "La Méthode," Thomas Gunzig’s "Spectres," and Yan Lespoux's "Les Amateurs." In the graphic novel category, Jade Khoo presented "Terre ou lune," Maybelline Skvortzoff showcased "Tachycardie," and a collaborative work titled "Cauchon, l’homme qui tua Jeanne d’Arc" was co-authored by Xavier Dorison, Louis-David Delahaye, and Joël Parnotte. The non-fiction nominees were Ariane Chemin’s "La guerre, ce sont les noms propres," Myriam Anissimov’s "Jean & Romain," and "L’homme par qui la peste arriva" by Gaspard Dhellemmes and Olivier Faye.
This diverse array of nominated works underscores the prize's goal of identifying literature that can successfully transition to screen adaptations.
Photos: Ludovica Arcero