French director Sarah Arnold’s Two Many Beasts (Espace Explosives) won this year’s European Cinemas label’s Best European Film award at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival Directors’ Fortnight, with critics calling it “stunningly quirky,” “charming and extravagant,” and “impactful and highly entertaining.”
The label, which is one of three Directors’ Fortnight awards scheduled to be announced on May 21st, is awarded by a jury of four European exhibition executives and guarantees Europa Cinemas support for the film in the form of additional promotion and incentives for exhibitors to extend the film’s run.
Produced by France’s 5 à 7 Films and distributed by Playtime, “Too Many Beasts” stars Alexis Manenti (“Les Misérables”) as Hulda. Fulda is a disgraced Corsican police officer who is transferred to northeastern France, where a war between farmers and hunters is spiraling out of control. Fulda investigates the disappearance of a farmer who took justice into her own hands, and together with Stefan, played by fellow eccentric broadcast psychologist Ella Rumpf (“Low”), she increasingly establishes her report as the film moves toward a comedy-thriller.
“A noir thriller, a detective comedy, a small-town mystery, and a quirky blend of all three, Too Many Beasts is a true surprise. It’s a strange, fun French film that gets weirder and crazier by the minute,” wrote critic Diego Lehrer.
“‘Too Many Beasts’ is a truly fresh and original debut feature. It’s a true genre-bender that encompasses action, romance, thriller, comedy, police procedural, and even romance,” said Panos Ahazioglu (Tele). Olympion Cinema in Saloniki), Octavian Dancila (Cinema Victoria, Cluj-Napoca, Romania); Alicia Hernants (Paris, Lucernaire) and Maris Promberg (Kino Bize, Riga, Latvia).
Too Many Beasts is Arnold’s first feature, but she has had an award-winning career in short films. Her first film, “Leçon de ténèbres” in 2010, won the Jury Prize at the Turin Film Festival. In 2014, “Totem” won the Locarno Best Short Film “Golden Leopard.” “Store Policy” won the French TV Award at the 2021 Clermont-Ferrand Festival.
Produced by Helen Olive and Martin Berthier Too Many Beasts was co-written by Arnold and Jeremy Dubois, Olivier Serol, Romain Winkler and Mehdi Ben Attia.
The film is co-produced by France 3 Cinéma and Playtime in collaboration with Pan Distribution, Ubik&Co, Cinemagage 20, Cofinova 22, Sansofica, France CNC National Film Commission, Procirep-Angoa and La Sacem de la Région Grand Est.
