# Lumière Award for Best Director

The Lumière Award for Best Director (French: Lumière de la meilleure mise en scène) is an award presented annually by the Académie des Lumières since 1996. It was presented as the Lumière du meilleur réalisateur from 1996 to 2019.

## Winners and nominees

Winners are listed first with a blue background, followed by the other nominees.

### 1990s

| Year | Winner | English title | Original title |
| 1996 (1st) | Mathieu Kassovitz | La Haine | La Haine |
| 1997 (2nd) | Cédric Klapisch | Family Resemblances | Un air de famille |
| 1998 (3rd) | Luc Besson | The Fifth Element | Le Cinquième Élément |
| 1999 (4th) | Erick Zonca | The Dreamlife of Angels | La Vie rêvée des anges |

### 2000s

| Year | Winner | English title | Original title |
| 2000 (5th) | Luc Besson | The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc | Jeanne d'Arc |
| 2001 (6th) | Agnès Jaoui | The Taste of Others | Le Goût des autres |
| 2002 (7th) | Patrice Chéreau | Intimacy | Intimité |
| 2003 (8th) | François Ozon | 8 Women | 8 femmes |
| 2004 (9th) | Alain Resnais | Not on the Lips | Pas sur la bouche |
| 2005 (10th) | Jean-Pierre Jeunet | A Very Long Engagement | Un long dimanche de fiançailles |
| 2006 (11th) | Philippe Garrel | Regular Lovers | Les Amants réguliers |
| 2007 (12th) | Pascale Ferran | Lady Chatterley | Lady Chatterley |
| 2007 (12th) | Alain Resnais | Private Fears in Public Places | Cœurs |
| 2007 (12th) | Claude Chabrol | Comedy of Power | L'Ivresse du pouvoir |
| 2007 (12th) | Guillaume Canet | Tell No One | Ne le dis à personne |
| 2007 (12th) | Bruno Dumont | Flanders | Flandres |
| 2008 (13th) | Abdellatif Kechiche | The Secret of the Grain | La Graine et le Mulet |
| 2008 (13th) | André Téchiné | The Witnesses | Les Témoins |
| 2008 (13th) | Olivier Dahan | La Vie en Rose | La môme |
| 2008 (13th) | Julian Schnabel | The Diving Bell and the Butterfly | Le Scaphandre et le Papillon |
| 2008 (13th) | Alfred Lot | Room of Death | La Chambre des morts |
| 2009 (14th) | François Dupeyron | With a Little Help from Myself | Aide-toi, le ciel t'aidera |
| 2009 (14th) | Arnaud Desplechin | A Christmas Tale | Un conte de Noël |
| 2009 (14th) | Laurent Cantet | The Class | Entre les murs |
| 2009 (14th) | Jean-Francois Richet | Mesrine: Killer Instinct | Mesrine: L'Instinct de mort |
| 2009 (14th) | Jean-Francois Richet | Mesrine: Public Enemy Number One | Mesrine: L'Ennemi public n° 1 |
| 2009 (14th) | Martin Provost | Séraphine | Séraphine |

### 2010s

| Year | Winner | English title | Original title |
| 2010 (15th) | Jacques Audiard | A Prophet | Un prophète |
| 2010 (15th) | Bertrand Tavernier | In the Electric Mist | Dans la brume électrique |
| 2010 (15th) | Anne Fontaine | Coco Before Chanel | Coco avant Chanel |
| 2010 (15th) | Philippe Lioret | Welcome | Welcome |
| 2010 (15th) | Xavier Giannoli | In the Beginning | À l'origine |
| 2011 (16th) | Roman Polanski | The Ghost Writer | The Ghost Writer |
| 2011 (16th) | Xavier Beauvois | Of Gods and Men | Des hommes et des dieux |
| 2011 (16th) | Olivier Assayas | Carlos | Carlos |
| 2011 (16th) | Mathieu Amalric | On Tour | Tournée |
| 2011 (16th) | Joann Sfar | Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life | Gainsbourg, vie héroïque |
| 2012 (17th) | Maïwenn | Polisse | Polisse |
| 2012 (17th) | Aki Kaurismäki | Le Havre | Le Havre |
| 2012 (17th) | Michel Hazanavicius | The Artist | The Artist |
| 2012 (17th) | Bertrand Bonello | House of Tolerance | L'Apollonide : Souvenirs de la maison close |
| 2012 (17th) | Pierre Schoeller | The Minister | L'Exercice de l'Etat |
| 2013 (18th) | Jacques Audiard | Rust and Bone | De rouille et d'os |
| 2013 (18th) | Noémie Lvovsky | Camille Rewinds | Camille Redouble |
| 2013 (18th) | Michael Haneke | Amour | Amour |
| 2013 (18th) | Leos Carax | Holy Motors | Holy Motors |
| 2013 (18th) | Cyril Mennegun | Louise Wimmer | Louise Wimmer |
| 2014 (19th) | Abdellatif Kechiche | Blue Is the Warmest Colour | La Vie d'Adèle – Chapitres 1 & 2 |
| 2014 (19th) | Bertrand Tavernier | The French Minister | Quai d'Orsay |
| 2014 (19th) | Albert Dupontel | 9 Month Stretch | 9 mois ferme |
| 2014 (19th) | Gilles Bourdos | Renoir | Renoir |
| 2014 (19th) | Michel Gondry | Mood Indigo | L'Ecume des jours |
| 2014 (19th) | Rebecca Zlotowski | Grand Central | Grand Central |
| 2015 (20th) | Abderrahmane Sissako | Timbuktu | Timbuktu |
| 2015 (20th) | Lucas Belvaux | Not My Type | Pas son genre |
| 2015 (20th) | Bertrand Bonello | Saint Laurent | Saint Laurent |
| 2015 (20th) | Benoît Jacquot | Three Hearts | 3 cœurs |
| 2015 (20th) | Cédric Kahn | Wild Life | Vie sauvage |
| 2015 (20th) | Céline Sciamma | Girlhood | Bande de filles |
| 2016 (21st) |
| 2016 (21st) | Arnaud Desplechin | My Golden Days | Trois souvenirs de ma jeunesse |
| 2016 (21st) | Jacques Audiard | Dheepan | Dheepan |
| 2016 (21st) | Catherine Corsini | Summertime | La Belle Saison |
| 2016 (21st) | Philippe Garrel | In the Shadow of Women | L'Ombre des femmes |
| 2016 (21st) | Xavier Giannoli | Marguerite | Marguerite |
| 2016 (21st) | Maïwenn | Mon roi | Mon roi |
| 2017 (22nd) |
| 2017 (22nd) | Paul Verhoeven | Elle | Elle |
| 2017 (22nd) | Bertrand Bonello | Nocturama | Nocturama |
| 2017 (22nd) | Stéphane Brizé | A Woman's Life | Une vie |
| 2017 (22nd) | Léa Fehner | Les Ogres |
| 2017 (22nd) | Alain Guiraudie | Staying Vertical | Rester vertical |
| 2017 (22nd) | Albert Serra | The Death of Louis XIV | La Mort de Louis XIV |
| 2018 (23rd) |
| 2018 (23rd) | Robin Campillo | BPM (Beats per Minute) | 120 battements par minute |
| 2018 (23rd) | Mathieu Amalric | Barbara | Barbara |
| 2018 (23rd) | Laurent Cantet | The Workshop | L'Atelier |
| 2018 (23rd) | Philippe Garrel | Lover for a Day | L'Amant d'un jour |
| 2018 (23rd) | Alain Gomis | Félicité | Félicité |
| 2018 (23rd) | Michel Hazanavicius | Redoubtable | Le Redoutable |
| 2019 (24th) |
| 2019 (24th) | Jacques Audiard | The Sisters Brothers | Les Frères Sisters |
| 2019 (24th) | Jeanne Herry | In Safe Hands | Pupille |
| 2019 (24th) | Xavier Legrand | Custody | Jusqu'à la garde |
| 2019 (24th) | Gaspar Noé | Climax | Climax |
| 2019 (24th) | Pierre Salvadori | The Trouble with You | En liberté ! |

### 2020s

| Year | Winner | English title | Original title |
| 2020 (25th) |
| 2020 (25th) | Roman Polanski | An Officer and a Spy | J'accuse |
| 2020 (25th) | Jérémy Clapin | I Lost My Body | J'ai perdu mon corps |
| 2020 (25th) | Arnaud Desplechin | Oh Mercy! | Roubaix, une lumière |
| 2020 (25th) | Ladj Ly | Les Misérables | Les Misérables |
| 2020 (25th) | Céline Sciamma | Portrait of a Lady on Fire | Portrait de la jeune fille en feu |
| 2021 (26th) |
| 2021 (26th) | Maïwenn | DNA | ADN |
| 2021 (26th) | Albert Dupontel | Bye Bye Morons | Adieu les cons |
| 2021 (26th) | Filippo Meneghetti | Two of Us | Deux |
| 2021 (26th) | Emmanuel Mouret | Love Affair(s) | Les Choses qu'on dit, les choses qu'on fait |
| 2021 (26th) | François Ozon | Summer of 85 | Été 85 |
| 2022 (27th) |
| 2022 (27th) | Leos Carax | Annette | Annette |
| 2022 (27th) | Jacques Audiard | Paris, 13th District | Les Olympiades |
| 2022 (27th) | Audrey Diwan | Happening | L'Événement |
| 2022 (27th) | Xavier Giannoli | Lost Illusions | Illusions perdues |
| 2022 (27th) | Arthur Harari | Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle | Onoda, 10 000 nuits dans la jungle |
| 2023 (28th) |
| 2023 (28th) | Albert Serra | Pacifiction | Pacifiction – Tourment sur les îles |
| 2023 (28th) | Rebecca Zlotowski | Other People's Children | Les Enfants des autres |
| 2023 (28th) | Dominik Moll | The Night of the 12th | La Nuit du 12 |
| 2023 (28th) | Valeria Bruni Tedeschi | Forever Young | Les Amandiers |
| 2023 (28th) | Gaspar Noé | Vortex | Vortex |
| 2024 (29th) |
| 2024 (29th) | Thomas Cailley | The Animal Kingdom | Le Règne animal |
| 2024 (29th) | Catherine Breillat | Last Summer | L'Été dernier |
| 2024 (29th) | Clément Cogitore | Sons of Ramses | Goutte d'or |
| 2024 (29th) | Cédric Kahn | The Goldman Case | Le Procès Goldman |
| 2024 (29th) | Justine Triet | Anatomy of a Fall | Anatomie d'une chute |
| 2025 (30th) |
| 2025 (30th) | Jacques Audiard | Emilia Pérez | Emilia Pérez |
| 2025 (30th) | Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de La Patellière | The Count of Monte Cristo | Le Comte de Monte-Cristo |
| 2025 (30th) | Alain Guiraudie | Misericordia | Miséricorde |
| 2025 (30th) | Boris Lojkine | Souleymane's Story | L'Histoire de Souleymane |
| 2025 (30th) | François Ozon | When Fall Is Coming | Quand vient l'automne |

## Trivia
### Multiple awards
#### 4 awards

* Jacques Audiard

#### 2 awards

* Luc Besson
* Abdellatif Kechiche
* Maïwenn
* Roman Polanski

### Multiple nominees
#### 6 nominations

* Jacques Audiard

#### 3 nominations

* Bertrand Bonello
* Arnaud Desplechin
* Philippe Garrel
* Xavier Giannoli
* Maïwenn
* François Ozon

#### 2 nominations

* Mathieu Amalric
* Luc Besson
* Laurent Cantet
* Leos Carax
* Albert Dupontel
* Alain Guiraudie
* Michel Hazanavicius
* Cédric Kahn
* Abdellatif Kechiche
* Gaspar Noé
* Roman Polanski
* Alain Resnais
* Céline Sciamma
* Albert Serra
* Bertrand Tavernier
* Rebecca Zlotowski