Award-winning French animation production and distribution company Dandelooo is delighted to announce that its film division Dandelooo Cinema has secured a deal with French production company Films Grand Huit and Academy Award®-nominated studio Xilam Animation for the feature film My Life in Versailles – The Movie. The deal gives Dandelooo Cinema exclusive worldwide distribution rights (excluding France, Italy, Germany and the UK).
Produced by Films Grand Huit and Mélusine Productions, with Xilam Animation and Miyu Productions on board as co-production partners, the 78-minute, 2D animated feature is currently in production. French distributor Jour 2 Fête has scheduled its theatrical release in France for October 2025.
Aimed at children aged 6 to 10, My Life in Versailles – The Movie is a heartwarming story of resilience and connection set against the iconic backdrop of the Palace of Versailles. Directed by Clémence Madeleine-Perdrillat and Nathaniel H’limi, the film blends kindness, sensitivity, humor and history all combined to captivate both children and families.
Lionel Massol, Producer at Films Grand Huit commented, “For many months now Clémence, Nathaniel and I have been working on this feature-length adaptation of
La Vie de Château surrounded by shared emotions – just like those of a theatre audience. We want the adventures of Violette and Régis to be experienced to the fullest – as a family, on the big screen. I am absolutely thrilled that Dandelooo, with its high-quality and carefully curated line-up has joined us in this great and beautiful adventure! They will be the perfect ambassadors for our story!”
“We are thrilled that Films Grand Huit chose Dandelooo as the International sales agent for the wonderful and meaningful My Life in Versailles – The Movie. We have been fans since the very early stages of development of this most touching story”, added Luna Sirvin, International Sales & Acquisitions Manager, Dandelooo Cinema.
After her parents’ passing, eight-year-old Violet goes to live with her uncle, Regis, a gruff maintenance worker at the Palace of Versailles. Despite a rocky start, Violet and Regis learn to live and face life’s challenges together. Through complex friendships, first loves and a Christmas trip to Violet’s grandparents, they slowly create a new life rich in discoveries and tender moments in the heart of Versailles.
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About Films Grand Huit
Films Grand Huit was founded in 2015 from by producers, Lionel Massol and Pauline Seigland, whose energies, temperaments, and backgrounds are as diverse as they are complementary. Together, they created a model that is uniquely their own: deliberately conceived as a light, agile, and bold structure, Films Grand Huit operates as a creative workspace that is both free and structured. Their shared vision is clear: to harness their complementary energies and experiences to foster the emergence of unique, original films.
A three-time César Award winner, with multiple selections at Cannes, Venice, and Toronto, the company supports its directors from short films to feature films—and now also series.
Films Grand Huit was the recipient of the 2021 Procirep Short Film Prize, the 2017 FrTV Young Producer Award, and the 2015 New Producer Label from the Maison du Film.
Lionel Massol is a 2018 Berlinale Talent and an alumnus of EAVE and ACE and will represent France at this year’s Producers on the Move program at the Cannes International Film Festival. Pauline Seigland is a two-time Paris Jeunes Talents laureate and was named one of
100 Women of Culture in 2021.
Today, the company has two offices – one in Paris and the other in Saint-Pierre-Quiberon, where it hosts writing and post-production residencies for filmmakers.
About Xilam Animation
A major player in animation, Xilam is an integrated studio founded in 1999 that creates, produces and distributes original programmes in more than 190 countries for both children and adult audiences. Xilam content is broadcast on television, and is also available on SVoD platforms including Netflix, Disney+, Amazon and AVoD streaming platforms including YouTube and Facebook.
With its creativity and capacity for innovation recognised worldwide, its unique expertise in CGI, as well as editorial and commercial expertise at the cutting edge of its industry, Xilam is positioned as a key player of the market. Each year, Xilam builds real successes and capitalises on its powerful historical brands including Oggy and the Cockroaches, Zig & Sharko and Chicky, as well as new properties such as “Oggy Oggy” for a preschool audience, “Mr Magoo” and” Karate Sheep”, and Academy Award® nominated adult feature film I Lost My Body.
Xilam’s expanding and strong catalogue now consists of over 2,800 episodes and three feature films. Xilam employs more than 500 individuals, including 400 artists, across its studios in Paris, Angoulême in France and Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam. Xilam was ranked France’s leading animation studio for the 2018-2023 period in a report by the French National Centre for Cinema and Animation (CNC).
About Dandelooo Cinéma
An expert in children’s animation, Dandelooo has been producing and distributing high-quality animated content for kids and family since 2010. In 2017, the company won an International Emmy Award, was named Best Producer of the Year at Cartoon Forum, and most recently received the Procirep Best Producer Award (2024).
Dandelooo has played a key role in the theatrical release of acclaimed animated films from around the world, including Shooom’s Odyssey, Ernest and Celestine Winter Tales, Stinky Dog in Paris, Pompon Bear, Dounia and Billy the Cowboy Hamster. In 2024 the company expanded into feature films with the launch of Dandelooo Cinéma.
Dandelooo Cinéma’s first feature film as an international sales agent, HOLA FRIDA by André Kadi and Karine Vézina – produced by Tobo Media and Haut et Court – has been sold to 20 countries. It premiered at the prestigious Morelia Film Festival in Mexico, won the Audience Award at both ANIMA and Stockholm International Film Festival.
Upcoming highlights include BORN IN THE JUNGLE by Edmunds Jansons (Mimi, Jacob and the Talking Dogs), GRANNY IS A TREE, the debut feature from Hugo de Faucompret, and the feature-length adaptation of THE UPSIDE-DOWN RIVER by Paul Leluc, an in-house Dandelooo production.
Dandelooo Cinéma is committed to promoting the French model of “éducation à l’image”, sharing eye-opening and meaningful stories that nourish both the heart and minds of children around the world.
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