Pepeuf · Cannes Edition · Auction Dossier
Pepeuf
Auction Dossier · Cannes Festival 2026

A paper dress
worn on the
Cannes red carpet.

Designer
Tania Zekkout
Worn by
Éloïse Valli
Edition
Cannes 2026
On the red carpet

Éloïse Valli,
dressed in paper.

For the second consecutive year, Pepeuf brings a paper dress to the Cannes Film Festival red carpet. A unique piece, designed by hand by Tania Zekkout in paperNAT by Pepeuf, worn by actress Éloïse Valli.

At the Cannes Film Festival 2026, actress Éloïse Valli walked the red carpet in a hand-sculpted piece, composed of hundreds of paper feathers cut one by one and accented with gold leaf. The dress was accompanied by jewellery from the Geneva-based ethical house AGUAdeORO.

The gesture continues the one initiated in 2025, when filmmaker Valérie Zoydo wore a dress made of 700 A4 sheets, also designed by Tania Zekkout. That first appearance was covered by ELLE Suisse, France Inter and RTS.

Both dresses share the same material: paperNAT by Pepeuf, a paper made from sugarcane bagasse, a by-product of the sugar industry. Each piece is unique, hand-assembled, and conceived as a sculptural object as much as a garment.

Éloïse Valli on the Cannes 2026 red carpet
Éloïse Valli · Festival de Cannes 2026

From the dress to the tree

Both the 2025 and 2026 Pepeuf dresses are intended for charity auction in support of A Tree For You, a reforestation association planting trees in France and abroad with local communities. From sugarcane waste transformed into couture object, to planted tree: the ecological loop closes.

Behind the dress

Tania Zekkout,
emotion as matter.

"Each piece tells a story, between poetry, memory and transformation."
Tania Zekkout, designer of the Pepeuf dresses 2025 & 2026

Independent from a young age, Tania Zekkout developed an instinctive and sensitive approach to design, where the garment becomes a language. At 21, she created her first haute couture piece for Christian Dior.

In 2009, she founded her own brand, conceived as a laboratory of artistic expression. Working between Alsace and Paris, she now pursues a free practice at the intersection of couture, sculpture and visual art.

Her universe brings together femininity, nature, craftsmanship and contrasts of materials: leather and lace, burnt organza, transparencies, fragile or raw textures.

For Pepeuf, she designed in 2025 the dress of 700 A4 sheets worn by Valérie Zoydo, then in 2026 the sculpture of paper feathers worn by Éloïse Valli. Two pieces that bring a singular couture gesture to the Cannes red carpet.

Technical specification — 2026 dress
Designer
Tania Zekkout
Material
paperNAT by Pepeuf, paper made from sugarcane bagasse
Construction
Hundreds of paper feathers hand-cut, accented with gold leaf
Worn by
Éloïse Valli, actress · Festival de Cannes 2026
Jewellery
AGUAdeORO, Geneva-based ethical jeweller (Fairtrade gold, traced stones)
Intended use
Charity auction in support of A Tree For You (reforestation)
On the red carpet

Éloïse Valli,
French actress.

Film, theatre and television actress, Éloïse Valli lent Pepeuf her grace and presence to bring the dress and its gesture to life, the length of a red carpet ascent.

Trained at AICOM and a laureate of the Royal Academy Dramatics Awards (RADA London) in 2017, Éloïse Valli has built a decade-long career across cinema, theatre and television.

In cinema, she appears in 2025 in L'Homme des signes by Zhor Fassi Fihri, sharing the screen with Vincent Elbaz, as well as in Les Films à l'arrache by Laurent Firode. In 2024, she played Sarah in 4 Zéros by Fabien Onteniente.

On television, she holds in 2025 the lead role of the Lissac campaign broadcast on major French channels. She has appeared in Balthazar (TF1, 2022) and in the TV film Flashs alongside Miou-Miou on France 2 (2024).

On stage, she is currently performing her solo show Délire d'Éloïse (2025). In 2019, she performed at the Festival d'Avignon in Déportée A-127450, a one-woman show adapted from a Holocaust survivor's testimony, followed by a national tour.

Éloïse Valli portrait, Cannes 2026
Éloïse Valli · Cannes 2026
Selected recent work
Cinema 2025
L'Homme des signes (Zhor Fassi Fihri) · Les Films à l'arrache (Laurent Firode)
Cinema 2024
4 Zéros by Fabien Onteniente
Television
Lissac 2025 campaign · Flashs with Miou-Miou (France 2) · Balthazar (TF1)
Theatre
Solo show Délire d'Éloïse (2025) · Déportée A-127450, Festival d'Avignon
Training
Royal Academy Dramatics Awards laureate · RADA London (2017)
From red carpet to auction catalogue

The 2025 dress,
first piece of the cycle.

The Pepeuf Cannes Edition is conceived as an annual ritual: one dress, one red carpet appearance, one year of signatures, one charity auction. The 2025 piece is the inaugural object of this cycle.

Designed by Tania Zekkout from over 700 A4 sheets of paperNAT by Pepeuf assembled by hand, the 2025 dress was worn on the Cannes Film Festival red carpet in May 2025 by filmmaker Valérie Zoydo.

Since then, the piece has begun a second life: it was exhibited at the Grand Palais during the ChangeNOW 2026 summit, presented in Pepeuf pop-ups in Paris and Geneva, and has gradually gathered signatures from figures across exploration, cinema, sport and the arts.

The piece is destined for charity auction in autumn 2026, with the proceeds donated in full to A Tree For You.

Auction object
Piece
paperNAT by Pepeuf 2025 dress, inaugural edition
Designer
Tania Zekkout
Red carpet
Festival de Cannes, May 2025
Worn by
Valérie Zoydo, filmmaker
Material
Over 700 sheets of paperNAT, hand-assembled
Work
Approx. 150 hours of creation
Beneficiary
A Tree For You
Timeline
Auction planned autumn 2026

Signatories gathered to date

Bertrand Piccard
Explorer, founder of Solar Impulse, patron of A Tree For You
Jean-Louis Étienne
Doctor, polar explorer, patron of A Tree For You
Stanislas Wawrinka
Tennis player, three-time Grand Slam champion
Adil Rami
Footballer, FIFA World Cup winner 2018
Éloïse Valli
Actress, ambassador of the 2026 edition
Vanessa Guide
Actress
Frédéric Forestier
Film director
François Troukens
Film director, author
Édouard Pluvieux
Film director

The list continues to grow. The complete, documented list of signatories will appear in the auction catalogue, alongside actors from the Théâtre du Palais-Royal production of Le Bourgeois gentilhomme and further contributors.

A recurring gesture

One dress, one year,
one auction.

Pepeuf Cannes Edition is conceived as a recurring cultural and charitable cycle. Each year, a new paper dress appears on the Cannes Film Festival red carpet. The previous dress then continues its journey, gathers signatures, builds provenance, and is sold at auction in support of reforestation.

May 2025
The first paperNAT by Pepeuf dress, designed by Tania Zekkout, appears on the Cannes Film Festival red carpet, worn by filmmaker Valérie Zoydo. Coverage by ELLE Suisse, France Inter and RTS.
2025 – 2026
The 2025 dress is exhibited at the Grand Palais during the ChangeNOW 2026 summit, then in Pepeuf pop-ups in Paris and Geneva, while gathering signatures.
May 2026
A second paper dress by Tania Zekkout is worn by actress Éloïse Valli on the Cannes Film Festival red carpet. Press coverage confirmed with ELLE (feature article and dedicated reportage) and Marie Claire, with further titles to follow.
Autumn 2026
Planned charity auction of the 2025 dress, with full proceeds donated to A Tree For You.
2027 onwards
The 2026 dress follows its own path of signatures, exhibitions and eventual auction. A new dress is created for the next Festival.

Cannes 2026 — Press coverage

ELLE — Feature article and a dedicated reportage on the Cannes 2026 operation.

Marie Claire — Coverage confirmed for the 2026 edition.

Cannes 2025 references — The 2025 dress was covered by ELLE Suisse, France Inter and RTS, establishing the project's initial press footprint.

Further titles are expected to follow in the weeks after the Festival.

For Kerry Taylor Auctions

Let us
continue the conversation.

High-resolution visuals, interviews, atelier access, conversations with the designer or the actress: we are at your disposal to build the angle and the documentation that best supports the auction.

Primary contact

Name
Jérémie Didi
Role
Co-founder, Pepeuf Sàrl
Email
jeremie.didi@pepeuf.com
Phone
+41 76 708 50 05
Online
pepeuf.com
pepeuf.com/en/cannes-edition-2/

Available resources

Visuals
High-resolution photographs, royalty-free, on request
Reportage
Backstage Cannes 2026 reportage by Georges Morère (film photography, vertical formats)
Interviews
Jérémie Didi · Tania Zekkout · Éloïse Valli
Atelier
Visit to the workshop where the dresses are assembled, on request
Inspection
Physical inspection of the 2025 dress can be arranged in Paris or London

Pepeuf Sàrl

Rue Caroline 2 · 1003 Lausanne · Switzerland
Operating across Geneva, Lausanne and Paris.