Cinémathèque française – Méliès Museum

Updated on September 30, 2026

In Bercy, the Cinémathèque française’s Méliès Museum explores cinema and special effects. Georges Méliès connects magic, optical inventions and contemporary films throughout the visit. Machines, costumes, drawings and film excerpts make up the display. You can follow the visit with a walk in nearby Bercy Park.

Highlights

Machines and illusions

The route brings magic lanterns and interactive devices together to explain how images are made. The photograph illustrates the Cinémathèque’s technical collections with a 1904 Physio-Pocket camera, without guaranteeing its presence in the current display.

From objects to special effects

Props, costumes and models connect Méliès’s inventions with the cinema that followed. This other view shows the historic camera’s case from the collections, photographed at a past exhibition.

Infos pratiques

Tips

Museum admission is €10, €7.50 for ages 18–25 and €5 for ages 6–17 (prices checked in September 2026). Entry is free on the first Sunday of the month. Book a time slot and bring proof for concessions. On the second Thursday of the month, general admission ends at 18:00, followed by a free evening reserved for registered visitors aged 18–25 and students.

How to get there

Metro Bercy, lines 6 and 14. Buses 24, 64, 71, 77, 87 and 215. Address: 51 rue de Bercy, 75012 Paris.

Opening hours

Idéal : Weekday noon outside the school holidays

Tuesday Closed

Monday and Wednesday-Friday 12:00-19:00

Saturday-Sunday 11:00-20:00 (school holidays and open public holidays 11:00-20:00; second Thursday general admission ends 18:00; closed on 1 May and 25 December)