Annecy hosts the world’s largest animation film festival, and the Animation Cinema City project aims to create a permanent and iconic showcase for this internationally renowned event. Beyond considerations of form and materials, the project seeks to open the site to the city, providing new spaces for daily life, social interaction, and cultural exchange. It positions itself within a broader urban and heritage reflection, addressing questions of public space extension, the integration of cultural facilities, and the role of nature within the urban fabric. The site’s history informs this approach: the original park did not stop at the east but extended around all the buildings. Reconstructing this green framework offers a setting for new uses while preserving and highlighting the memory and identity of the place.
The outdoor interventions, at the junctions of the riding arena and stables, represent a major urban challenge. On the Rue de la Paix side, an open hall facing the square extends the market and accommodates large gatherings or events, while protecting users from sun and rain. On the Boulevard du Lycée and Avenue de Brogny side, the open forecourt creates a perspective from the west and facilitates access to the park. The covered passage crossing it connects the cultural hub’s reception area with exhibition and screening spaces, providing a central, flexible meeting place accessible to both the neighborhood and the city.
The project is based on a careful reading of the existing heritage and landscape. The volume of the riding arena is preserved, while the former tack room becomes the site reception, with its woodwork recalling the equestrian past. The park is treated as a living composition, where lawns, meadows, groves, and clusters of trees interact with the existing ‘vegetal cathedrals.’ The central square, with its basin and water features, becomes a lively and welcoming space. The hall, passage, park, and basin together create places for meeting and sharing, integrating seamlessly with the city, its streets, and canals, and strengthening the connection between nature, water, and urban life.
Annecy hosts the world’s largest animation film festival, and the Animation Cinema City project aims to create a permanent and iconic showcase for this internationally renowned event. Beyond considerations of form and materials, the project seeks to open the site to the city, providing new spaces for daily life, social interaction, and cultural exchange. It positions itself within a broader urban and heritage reflection, addressing questions of public space extension, the integration of cultural facilities, and the role of nature within the urban fabric. The site’s history informs this approach: the original park did not stop at the east but extended around all the buildings. Reconstructing this green framework offers a setting for new uses while preserving and highlighting the memory and identity of the place.
The outdoor interventions, at the junctions of the riding arena and stables, represent a major urban challenge. On the Rue de la Paix side, an open hall facing the square extends the market and accommodates large gatherings or events, while protecting users from sun and rain. On the Boulevard du Lycée and Avenue de Brogny side, the open forecourt creates a perspective from the west and facilitates access to the park. The covered passage crossing it connects the cultural hub’s reception area with exhibition and screening spaces, providing a central, flexible meeting place accessible to both the neighborhood and the city.
The project is based on a careful reading of the existing heritage and landscape. The volume of the riding arena is preserved, while the former tack room becomes the site reception, with its woodwork recalling the equestrian past. The park is treated as a living composition, where lawns, meadows, groves, and clusters of trees interact with the existing ‘vegetal cathedrals.’ The central square, with its basin and water features, becomes a lively and welcoming space. The hall, passage, park, and basin together create places for meeting and sharing, integrating seamlessly with the city, its streets, and canals, and strengthening the connection between nature, water, and urban life.
Alep, landscape architect
Ducks Sceno, scenographer
Les Éclaireurs, lighting engineer
Louis Choulet, fluids
Batiserf, structure
BMF, economist
Studio Dap, acoustician
Batiss, fire safety
