SWISS FILMS Docs Fall 2021 by SWISS FILMS

SWISS

2021 DOCS FALL

FILMS

SWISS FILMS Neugasse 6, 8005 Zurich Switzerland www.swissfilms.ch WATCH SWISS SHORTS ONLINE www.swissfilms.ch/shortfilmlibrary

SWISS FILMS Neugasse 6, 8005 Zurich www.swissfilms.ch Published in October 2021 Image campaign by Solène Gün

SWISS FILMS DOCS FALL 2021

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NEW DOCS FEATURES A THOUSAND FIRES ADOLF MUSCHG – THE OTHER CAVEMAN – THE HIDDEN GIANT HARALD NAEGELI – THE ZURICH SPRAYER HUGO IN ARGENTINA LES NOUVELLES ÈVES LIFE BEGINS, LIFE ENDS LOVE WILL COME LATER LUX MOTHER LODE NOT JUST ROADS SÌRÌRÌ THE CARDINAL & THE IMAM STAND UP MY BEAUTY THE SPARK WATCH OVER ME

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NEW DOCS SHORTS ALASKA AN ITALIAN SQUARE IN GOOD HANDS RUN FAST, BITE HARD THE PATIENCE OF VINES THING

20 FESTIVAL FAVOURITES FEATURES 22 FESTIVAL FAVOURITES SHORTS 23 COMING SOON 34 IN PRODUCTION 35 SUPPORT MEASURES

SWISS FILMS TEAM

ANDREAS BÜHLMANN Head of Festivals & Markets abuehlmann@swissfilms.ch T +41 79 303 58 69

LAURA DANIEL Consultant Film, Talent & Awards ldaniel@swissfilms.ch T +41 76 343 61 16

MARCEL MÜLLER Consulting Film, Programmes & VOD mmueller@swissfilms.ch T +41 79 787 93 88

SYLVAIN VAUCHER Consultant Short Films svaucher@swissfilms.ch T +41 79 542 83 80

NEW DOCS FEATURES

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MILLE FEUX

A THOUSAND FIRES

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written & directed by Saeed Taji Farouky 2

A tale of family, oil, and life cycles in Myanmar’s handdrilled oil fields. Htwe Tin and Thein Shwe work hard to give their children a better future, their lives governed by a web of karma and astrology. All their hopes are pinned on their youngest son, Zin Ko Aung. When he leaves home to make his own life, his parents must learn to let their children go.

Documentary

WORLD SALES: Square Eyes, Nijmegen www.squareeyesfilm.com WORLD PREMIERE: Locarno Film Festival 2021

FRANCE / SWITZERLAND / NETHERLANDS / PALESTINE Documentary, 90 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Burmese PRODUCTION: Point du Jour – Les films du Balibari, Nantes / Akka Films, Geneva / BIND, Amsterdam / RTS / Odeh Films, Ramallah SWISS PRODUCER: Palmyre Badinier

SAEED TAJI FAROUKY * 1978 in Great Britain. Saeed Taji Farouky is a PalestinianBritish filmmaker and radical film educator whose work deals with themes of conflict, human rights, and colonialism. His documentary TELL SPRING NOT TO COME THIS YEAR (2015) premiered at the Berlinale where it won two awards. A THOUSAND FIRES (2021) received the Marco Zucchi Award of the Semaine de la critique at the Locarno Film Festival.

NEW DOCS FEATURES ADOLF MUSCHG – DER ANDERE

ADOLF MUSCHG – THE OTHER

Today, Adolf Muschg is one of Switzerland’s most important literary figures. The portrait follows his career and retraces the path of his novel “Heimkehr nach Fukushima” to the contaminated region and a Zen monastery in Japan. In reflecting about his otherness via the west-east culture, he came to term in understanding his “otherness” and what it means to be a foreigner.

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 86 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: German PRODUCTION: Ariadnefilm GmbH, Zumikon / SRF / SRG SSR / 3sat Zurich PRODUCER: Erich Schmid

WORLD RIGHTS: Ariadnefilm GmbH, Zumikon www.erichschmid.ch WORLD PREMIERE: Zurich Film Festival 2021 MORE INFORMATION: www.adolfmuschg-film.ch

Documentary

ERICH SCHMID * 1947. Erich Schmid worked as a journalist and was a reporter for the Tages-Anzeiger in Zurich from 1976–86. Later he worked as domestic editor of the weekly WoZ. In 1987/88 he co-authored the first screenplay for his bestseller VERHÖR UND TOD IN WINTERTHUR. He directed and wrote further screenplays and books. He lives and works in Max Bill’s studio in Zumikon and is married to his widow. ADOLF MUSCHG – THE OTHER (2021) premiered at the Zurich Film Festival.

written & directed by Erich Schmid

NEW DOCS FEATURES

CAVEMAN – THE HIDDEN GIANT written & directed by Tommaso Landucci 4

Sculptor Filippo Dobrilla considers art a rebellion. For almost thirty years, he has been sculpting a naked man, a four metre marble giant, at the bottom of one of the deepest caves in Europe. What’s the secret behind the most inaccessible piece of art in the world?

Documentary

WORLD SALES: Deckert Distribution, Leipzig www.deckert-distribution.com WORLD PREMIERE: Giornate degli Autori, Venice 2021

ITALY / SWITZERLAND Documentary, 91 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Italian PRODUCTION: DocLab, Roma / Contrast Film, Zurich / RSI SWISS PRODUCER: Ivan Madeo

TOMMASO LANDUCCI * 1989 in Italy. Tommaso Landucci has a degree in directing from Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome. In 2012 he started working as assistant director for Claudio Giovannesi and Luca Guadagnino. He meets Oscar-winning director James Ivory who becomes his mentor and executive producer of his first feature-length fiction project I LEVITANTI, based on his same-titled short film, which is currently in financing.

NEW DOCS FEATURES HARALD NAEGELI – DER SPRAYER VON ZÜRICH

HARALD NAEGELI – THE ZURICH SPRAYER

Art or vandalism? The sprayer from Zurich has been challenging this question since 1977. Currently, he’s getting into trouble with the Dance of Death in Zurich’s Gross münster church. He has been drawing his “Primeval Clouds” for over twenty years. Both works are his paths to utopia, his kind of freedom. Harald Naegeli, now 81 years old, has been diagnosed with cancer. The film is his testament and an examination of the controversially discussed, versatile Swiss artist. WORLD RIGHTS: SWITZERLAND / GERMANY PS Film GmbH, Zurich Documentary, 97 min., 2021 www.psfilm.ch ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: Pitchounproduction, Hamburg German, Swiss-German pitchoun-production@gmx.de PRODUCTION: WORLD PREMIERE: PS Film GmbH, Zurich / Zurich Film Festival 2021 Pitchounproduction, Hamburg / MORE INFORMATION: SRF www.dersprayervonzuerichSWISS PRODUCER: film.ch Peter Spoerri

Documentary

NATHALIE DAVID * 1963 in France. Nathalie David studied Fine Arts in Nice, Hamburg and Paris. She works as a filmmaker, artist and photo grapher. In 2009 she founded PITCHOUNPRODUCTION. She has directed a number of films on art, many of them commissioned by museums and galleries. She lives in Hamburg and Berlin. HARALD NAEGELI – THE ZURICH SPRAYER premiered at the Zurich Film Festival.

written & directed by Nathalie David

NEW DOCS FEATURES

HUGO IN ARGENTINA written & directed by Stefano Knuchel 6

A promising Italian cartoonist lands in Buenos Aires in 1950, with the dream of reaching the United States, to discover that, for him, America will be Argentina. The country immediately overpowers him with its massive economic boom and a cultural scene among the most vibrant in the world. We are at the dawn of Argentina’s most raving decade and the young immigrant feels that all the promises of this country are for him to grasp. His name will indeed make itself known: Hugo Pratt.

Documentary

WORLD RIGHTS: Fiumi Film, Promontogno www.fiumifilm.ch WORLD PREMIERE: Giornate degli Autori, Venice 2021

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 95 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: French, Spanish PRODUCTION: Fiumi Film, Promontogno / RSI PRODUCER: Vittoria Fiumi

STEFANO KNUCHEL * 1966. Stefanio Knuchel is a primarily self-taught director. In 1988 he started working for the Italian Swiss radio and later for the Italian Swiss Broadcasting Service (RSI). He received a diploma from The Film & Photographic Workshop, Rockport in Maine in 2001. He is the founder of Venus and beyond production company. Among his documentaries are HUGO PRATT IN AFRICA (2009), selected at the Orizzonti competition of the 66th Venice Film Festival and QUANDO ERO CLOCLO (2017).

NEW DOCS FEATURES

LES NOUVELLES ÈVES One year after the national women’s strike, the issue of equal rights has not yet been fully discussed. In this collective documentary, six female directors delve into the everyday lives of six women from diverse professions and explore what it means to be a woman in present-day Switzerland. Insights into the lives of these “everyday heroines” show how they resist role attributions and fight for their personal goals.

WORLD RIGHTS: SWITZERLAND Emilia Productions, Zurich Documentary, 80 min., 2021 www.emiliaproductions.com ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: WORLD PREMIERE: German, French, Italian, Zurich Film Festival 2021 Swiss-German PRODUCTION: Emilia Productions, Zurich / SRG SSR PRODUCERS: Judith Lichtneckert, Liliane Ott

Documentary

A “collaborative” work by six female directors Camille Budin, Annie Gisler, Jela Hasler, Thaïs Odermatt, Wendy Pillonel, Anna Thommen and producers Judith Lichtneckert, Liliane Ott and DOP Gabriela Betschart.

written & directed by Camille Budin, Annie Gisler, Jela Hasler, Thaïs Odermatt, Wendy Pillonel, Anna Thommen

NEW DOCS FEATURES

LIFE BEGINS, LIFE ENDS

VIDA COMIENZA, VIDA TERMINA

written & directed by Rafael Palacio Illingworth 8

Cancer appeared one morning on her right breast and suddenly life became fragile and precious. A filmmaker decided to chronicle time passing, with all its beautiful simplicity. The film diary of a family, pieces of an Argentinian fiction film that wants to be completed, a tumor that dreams to be loved, two hunters looking for something to kill. The film glides between reality and fiction as the filmmaker tries to grasp the essence of his passing life.

Docufiction

WORLD RIGHTS: Nora Films GmbH, Zurich www.norafilms.com WORLD PREMIERE: Festival international de cinéma Marseille 2021

SWITZERLAND / UNITED STATES Docufiction, 87 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: Swiss-German, Spanish, English CAST: Cristian Salguero, Eleonore Meier, Mariana Anghileri PRODUCTION: Nora Films GmbH, Zurich / Solo Five Productions, Santa Barbara / enSoie Zurich, Zurich SWISS PRODUCER: Rafael Palacio Illingworth

RAFAEL PALACIO ILLINGWORTH * 1978 in Mexico. After attending the American Film Institute Conservatory in Los Angeles, his first feature film, MACHO (2010), won Best Micro-Budget Feature at Raindance Film Festival in the UK. Since than he has directed various films, such as BETWEEN US (2016), which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival. He is is currently in pre-production of his next feature film ALMA, a story set in the mountains of southern Switzerland.

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LOVE WILL COME LATER

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written & directed by Julia Furer

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 81 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: English, Arabic, Berber PRODUCTION: freihändler Filmproduktion GmbH, Basel / Zurich University of the Arts ZHdK / SRF PRODUCERS: Franziska Sonder, Stella Händler

WORLD RIGHTS: freihändler Filmproduktion GmbH, Basel www.freihaendler.ch WORLD PREMIERE: Zurich Film Festival 2021

Documentary

JULIA FURER * 1990. Julia Furer participated with her short documentary JULIAN (2015) in the EFP talent programme FUTURE FRAMES – Ten New Filmmakers To Follow at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. She graduated with a Master's degree in directing from Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK) in 2021. LOVE WILL COME LATER is her first feature documentary and premiered at the Zurich Film Festival.

Inside Marrakech’s bustling Medina, Samir is looking for love and a brighter future. But his summer flings all come to a bitter end at the airport and he is left behind in a country with limited possibilities. When Samir really falls in love, he is faced with a major decision: Should he listen to his sisters and agree to an arranged marriage in Morocco? Or should he follow his love and his dream of a brighter future in Europe?

NEW DOCS FEATURES

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LUX

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written & directed by Raphaël Dubach, Mateo Ybarra 10

In early fall 2019, Geneva faces an unprecedented security crisis: the imminent attack by an anti-capitalist terrorist group known as the Global Liberation Front. The Swiss army is immediately called upon to assist the police force in containing the threat. Such is the extraordinary log line of LUX, the huge Swiss army simulation exercise. Ten days where 1,500 soldiers took part in a life-size game to tackle a fictitious threat.

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 72 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French jeunessauvages@protonmail.com PRODUCERS: WORLD PREMIERE: Raphaël Dubach, Thessaloniki Documentary Festival 2021 Mateo Ybarra

Documentary

PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Jeunes Sauvages, Geneva

RAPHAËL DUBACH * 1992. Raphaël Dubach is a director, cinematographer, camera assistant and colourist. He has a Bachelor in Cinema from ECAL. MATEO YBARRA * 1992. Mateo Ybarra works as a director and producer. He studied at the University of the Arts in London and graduated from Geneva University of Art and Design (HEAD – Genève). LUX is their first feature film, winner of the SRG SSR award in Locarno 2020 (The Films After Tomorrow section).

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MOTHER LODE

directed by Matteo Tortone

FRANCE / ITALY / SWITZERLAND Docufiction, 86 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Spanish SCREENPLAY: Matteo Tortone, Mathieu Granier PRODUCTION: Wendigo Films, Paris / Malfé Film, Torino / C-Side Productions, Geneva SWISS PRODUCER: Benjamin Poumey

WORLD SALES: Intramovies, Roma www.intramovies.com WORLD PREMIERE: Settimana internazionale della critica, Venice 2021

Docufiction

MATTEO TORTONE * 1982 in Italy. Matteo Tortone studied literature at Turin University and works as author, producer and d.o.p. He codirected WHITE MEN (2011) with Alessandro Baltera – winner of the Jury Prize at Kazan Film Festival. He was awarded the prize for best cinematography at Krakow Film Festival for RADA (2014), directed by Alessandro Abbalegnazzi. Since 2016 he works as producer with Malfé Film. He won the Eurimages Lab Award, Agora Work in Progress TIFF 2019, for MOTHER LODE.

Jorge, a young Lima mototaxi driver reaches the richest and most dangerous goldmine in Peru. Lost under a glacier in the Andes mountains, La Rinconada is “the closest city to the sky”. It attracts thousands of seasonal workers like Jorge, in quest for a bit of fortune and a better life. But each year numerous miners mysteriously disappear. For gold belongs to the Devil, “El Tio de la Mina”. And in exchange for a few gold nuggets, he requires some sacrifices.

NEW DOCS FEATURES

NOT JUST ROADS 12

written & directed by Nitin Bathla, Klearjos Eduardo Papanicolaou The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) builds twenty-three kilometres of highway every day. This unpre cedented steamrolling of urban land corridors creates conflicts with communities, society and the environment. This film captures these conflicts through encounters with human and non-human actors entangled with the road construction.

Documentary

PRODUCTION AND SWITZERLAND Documentary, 67 min., 2021 WORLD RIGHTS: ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Nitin Bathla, Zurich Hindi bathla@arch.ethz.ch PRODUCERS: Klearjos Eduardo Nitin Bathla, Klearjos Eduardo Papanicolaou, Zurich papanicolaou@arch.ethz.ch Papanicolaou WORLD PREMIERE: Arch Film Festival London 2021 INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: Docaviv 2021

NITIN BATHLA * 1986 in India. The architect, artist, and educator currently pursues Doctoral Studies at the Swiss Federal Insititute of Technology in Zurich (ETHZ). His films focus on labor migration, land ecology, community art and social design projects. KLEARJOS EDUARDO PAPANICOLAOU * 1989 in Mexico. He has a filmmaking diploma from the European Film College in Denmark. Based in Zurich, he teaches filmmaking to architecture students at the ETHZ.

NEW DOCS FEATURES SIRIRI – LE CARDINAL ET L’IMAM

SÌRÌRÌ – THE CARDINAL & THE IMAM written & directed by Manuel von Stürler

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 76 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French PRODUCERS: Adrian Blaser, Aline Schmid

PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Beauvoir Films, Geneva www.beauvoirfilms.ch INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: Human Rights Film Festival Berlin 2021

Documentary

MANUEL VON STÜRLER * 1968 Manuel von Stürler has joint Swiss and French nationality. He studied trombone, piano and composition at the conservatory of Neuchâtel and at the jazz school of Lausanne. He regularly performs in Switzerland and abroad, and writes numerous pieces of music for the stage. His documentary HIVER NOMADE (2012) premiered at the Berlinale. Distributed in Switzerland, Europe and the USA, it was a great success with over 150,000 admissions. LA FUREUR DE VOIR (2017) premiered at Visions du Réel in Nyon.

Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic. Rebels are instrumentalizing religion and pushing Christians and Muslims to kill each other. Together with Imam Kobine Lamaya, Cardinal Dieudonné Nzapalainga implores the people not to succumb to the trap of this repetitive scenario. A film about an unusual duet that strikes realities not only in Africa.

NEW DOCS FEATURES

STAND UP MY BEAUTY written & directed by Heidi Specogna 14

Nardos, an Azmari singer from Addis Ababa, dreams of telling stories about the lives of ordinary people through her music. In her search of stories for her songs, she meets Gennet, a poet who lives on the streets with her children. As Nardos puts the lives of Ethiopian women, their visions and power at the centre of her creation, we dive deeper and deeper into a rapidly changing country.

Documentary

WORLD SALES: Deckert Distribution, Leipzig www.deckert-distribution.com WORLD PREMIERE: Locarno Film Festival 2021

SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Documentary, 110 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Amharic PRODUCTION: FAMA FILM AG, Zurich / Ma.ja.de. Filmproduktions GmbH, Berlin / SRF / ZDF / 3sat SWISS PRODUCER: Rolf Schmid

HEIDI SPECOGNA * 1959. Heidi Specogna graduated from the German Film and Television Academy Berlin (DFFB) in 1988. She is known for her award-winning documentaries TANIA LA GUERRILLERA (1991), TUPAMAROS (1997), THE SHORT LIFE OF JOSÉ ANTONIO GUTIERREZ (2006) and CARTE BLANCHE (2011). Her previous film CAHIER AFRICAN (2016) won Best Documentary at the Swiss Film Awards 2017 as well as at the German Film Awards. In 2019 she was honoured with the Konrad-Wolf-Prize of the Academy of Arts in Berlin.

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THE SPARK

L’ÉTINCELLE

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written & directed by Valeria Mazzucchi, Antoine Harari

ANTOINE HARARI * 1987. Antoine Harari is a freelance investigative journalist. He has carried out numerous reports and investigations for the Swiss media, mainly in Malta, Northern Cyprus and Sicily.

SWITZERLAND / FRANCE / ITALY Documentary, 61 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French PRODUCTION: Akka Films, Geneva / Temps Noir, Paris / 5e6, Brescia / Futur Proche, Geneva SWISS PRODUCERS: Nicolas Wadimoff, Philippe Coeytaux, Palmyre Badinier

WORLD RIGHTS: Akka Films, Geneva www.akkafilms.ch WORLD PREMIERE: Visions du Réel Nyon 2021 INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: DocLisboa 2021

Documentary

VALERIA MAZZUCCHI * 1990. After studying international relations and international law at the University of Geneva, she directed several documentaries and collaborated with various media and NGOs. In 2020 she participated in the Biennale College Cinema VR in Venice.

Despite its victory in the struggle against the airport, the future of the “Zone to Defend” of Notre-Dame-desLandes is more than uncertain. Threatened both from within and without, its inhabitants know that 2018 will be decisive for their movement. We tell the story of their doubts and their struggles.

NEW DOCS FEATURES

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WATCH OVER ME

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written & directed by Farida Pacha

Documentary

Mani, Sini and Dr. Reena are a team of counselor, nurse and doctor working for a palliative care organization in New Delhi. Within 48 hours of receiving a call through the helpline, they reach out to provide medical care and emotional support through weekly home visits. Their job is not an easy one because they can’t offer the one thing which patients and their families are desperately looking for – a cure. What they can offer instead is to assist the patient in accepting that dying is a normal process, a part of life. WORLD RIGHTS: Leafbird Films GmbH, Zurich www.leafbirdfilms.com NATIONAL PREMIERE: Solothurner Filmtage 2021 INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: Movies That Matter Festival The Hague 2021 Grand Jury Documentary Award MORE INFORMATION: www.watchovermefilm.com

SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Documentary, 92 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Hindi PRODUCTION: Leafbird Films GmbH, Zurich / Ventana Film- und Fernsehproduktion GmbH, Berlin SWISS PRODUCERS: Lutz Konermann, Farida Pacha

FARIDA PACHA National Award winning documentary filmmaker, Farida Pacha was born in Mumbai and studied filmmaking at Southern Illinois University, USA. Her debut feature-length documentary, MY NAME IS SALT (2013), won thirty-five international awards including the main prizes at IDFA, Edinburgh, Hong Kong, Madrid and Mumbai film festivals. She explores the human condition in an observational style, to tell intimate stories. WATCH OVER ME screened at Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival.

L’ALASKA written & directed by Louis Hans-Moëvi

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 29 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Close Up Films, Geneva www.closeupfilms.ch PRODUCERS: Joëlle Bertossa, Flavia Zanon NATIONAL PREMIERE: Solothurner Filmtage 2021 INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: Warsaw International Film Festival 2021

From the garden of his house in the Swiss countryside, 19-year-old Luca dreams of another life, deep in the hostile northern wilderness. This fantasized territory could be called Alaska. But around skulls, brains and deer skins, hasn’t he already reached his destination?

Documentary

NEW DOCS SHORTS

ALASKA

AN ITALIAN SQUARE

The audio-visual artefact of an enigmatic architecture rising at the foot of a square. A temple? A museum? A shopping centre? The headquarters of a company? By constantly shifting between past and present, the film explores the fate of an indefinable building, the icon of an ambiguous place suspended between Switzerland and Italy.

SWITZERLAND Documentary / Experimental, 13 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Italian PRODUCER: Enea Zucchetti PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Enea Zucchetti, Massagno www.eneazucchetti.com WORLD PREMIERE: Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur 2021

Documentary

PIAZZALE D’ITALIA written & directed by Enea Zucchetti

IN GUTEN HÄNDEN written & directed by Kezia Zurbrügg, Philipp Ritler

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 13 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, Swiss-German PRODUCTION: Dynamic Frame GmbH, Zurich PRODUCER: Philipp Ritler WORLD RIGHTS: Kezia Zurbrügg, Lucerne kzurbruegg@hotmail.com Philipp Ritler, Bern philipp.ritler@dynamic-frame.ch WORLD PREMIERE: Sarajevo Film Festival 2021

The lines are busy at the telephone helpline. A life coach records an encouraging video while concerned parents consult a child psychologist. A spectrum of cinematic tableaus shows people trying to counteract the increasing loneliness and create closeness.

Documentary

NEW DOCS SHORTS

IN GOOD HANDS

RUN FAST, BITE HARD

Documentary

written & directed by Tobias Kubli

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 8 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Without dialogue PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Tobias Kubli, Zurich www.tobiaskubli.com PRODUCER: Tobias Kubli WORLD PREMIERE: Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur 2021

The camera accompanies the Swiss Agility Championship in Kaiseraugst as a silent observer. It tries to capture the complexity of this niche sport and portray it as neutrally as possible. The stressed competitive determination of the masters and mistresses competes with the detached emotions in dogs and humans and draws an emotional and humorous picture at eye level.

SWITZERLAND / FRANCE Documentary / Experimental, 15 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French PRODUCTION: Artist Collective Revolta, Lausanne / Ardèche Images, Lussas SWISS PRODUCER: Carlos Tapia González WORLD RIGHTS: Agnese Làposi, Tegna agnese.laposi@lilo.org WORLD PREMIERE: Etats généraux du film Lussas 2021

Experimental

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In 1888, the phylloxera epidemic ravages European vineyards, spreading despair. Monsieur Chevrier sets off on a journey to the place that seems to have found a solution: a factory in which vines are grafted.

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LA PATIENCE DES VIGNES written & directed by Agnese Làposi

NEW DOCS SHORTS

THE PATIENCE OF VINES

THING

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 22 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: German PRODUCER Filippo Bonacci PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Zurich University of the Arts ZHdK moritz.schneider@zhdk.ch WORLD PREMIERE: Locarno Film Festival 2021

Documentary

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The ways of love are strange indeed. Sometimes they lead to the neighbours’ rooftop terrace or to the music stand of a grand piano in the university basement. Valentina and Sonnili both live in an intimate relationship with an object. Even if the hurdles of social acceptance might be incomparable, the big topics remain the same: intimacy, comfort and that the world is a nicer place, if you share it.

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DING written & directed by Pascale Egli, Aurelio Ghirardelli

Fifteen years ago Nikola left Serbia to follow his heart to Switzerland. Since then his life is shared between two countries and three women: his mother Dida, his grandmother and his wife. His mother has learning disabilities and has always been dependent on grandmother. As grandmother is getting older, he is called back home. How can he help his mother live a life of independence without losing his own?

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SWITZERLAND Documentary, 87 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: Serbian, Swiss-German, German PRODUCTION: Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion AG, Zurich / SRF WORLD SALES: Amarena Film, Napoli www.amarenafilm.it FESTIVALS (SELECTION): Visions du Réel Nyon 2021 / Molodist Kyiv 2021 / Beldocs Belgrade 2021 / DOK Leipzig 2021 / RIDM Montreal 2021

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written & directed by Nikola Ilić, Corina Schwingruber Ilić E

Documentary

DIDA

OSTROV – LOST ISLAND

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Documentary

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 90 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Russian PRODUCTION: DokLab GmbH, Bern WORLD SALES: Taskovski Films Ltd, London www.taskovskifilms.com FESTIVALS (SELECTION): Visions du Réel Nyon 2021 / Hot Docs Toronto 2021 / Locarno Film Festival 2021 / Guanajuato Int. Film Festival 2021 / RIDM Montreal 2021

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OSTROV – DIE VERLORENE INSEL written & directed by Svetlana Rodina, Laurent Stoop On the island of Ostrov in the Caspian Sea the inhabitants, left alone by the Russian state after the collapse of the Soviet Union, survive through poaching. Ivan regularly goes out to sea risking his life and freedom. He struggles, he laughs, he dances, he fights and he believes that one day Putin will see their misery and help. Best Int. Feature Documentary Award Hot Docs Toronto 2021

SWITZERLAND / GEORGIA / GERMANY Documentary, 90 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: Georgian, Mingrelian PRODUCTION: Mira Film, Basel / Sakdoc Film, Tbilisi / Corso Film, Cologne / SRF / ARTE / Radio Bremen WORLD SALES: Syndicado Film Sales, Toronto www.syndicadofs.com FESTIVALS (SELECTION): Sundance 2021 / Berlinale 2021 / CPH DOX 2021 / Hot Docs Toronto 2021 / Shanghai 2021 / RIDM Montreal 2021 /

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IDFA 2021

FESTIVAL FAVOURITES FEATURES

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A powerful man, the former Prime Minister of Georgia, buys some 100-year-old trees. His men uproot them, and bring them to his private garden: through villages, over hills and across the Black Sea. Other trees must be cut, electric cables moved and new roads paved through mandarin plantations. The film takes the concept of “uprooting” from its metaphorical meaning to an oppressive, tangible and yet surreal reality.

written & directed by Salomé Jashi

Documentary

TAMING THE GARDEN

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SWITZERLAND Documentary, 90 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, English, Japanese PRODUCTION: Intermezzo Films, Geneva WORLD SALES: Taskovski Films Ltd, London www.taskovskifilms.com FESTIVALS (SELECTION): Visions du Réel Nyon 2021 / CPH:DOX 2021 / Krakow Film Festival 2021 / Millennium Docs Against Gravity Warsaw 2021 MORE INFORMATION: www.themushroomspeaks.ch

Documentary

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A walk alongside parasites, symbionts and decomposers offering ideas of both interconnectedness and collaboration. Driven by a vision of resistance, the encounters seek possibilities of renewal and question what connects us when the world seems to be falling apart. The film invites to imagine a myco-cultural (r)evolution. What if the fungus could help us address and radically change our relationship to this world?

written & directed by Marion Neumann

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Rokhaya, a young director, returns to her home in Dakar to make a film about a local historical figure. Throughout her research, which consists of interviews with local personalities, discussions with her team and fictional scenes shot on location, we discover the story of Aline Sitoe Diatta. Best Documentary Award IndieLisboa

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SWITZERLAND Docufiction, 27 min., 2021 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: French, Wolof PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Geneva University of Art and Design (HEAD – Genève) head.hesge.ch/cinema FESTIVALS (SELECTION): Visions du Réel Nyon 2021 / Atlanta Film Festival 2021 / Vienna Shorts Festival 2021 / IFFR 2021 / Sheffield Doc / Fest 2021 / IndieLisboa 2021 / San Sebastian 2021 / Kassel Dokfest 2021

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FESTIVAL FAVOURITES SHORTS

À LA RECHERCHE D’ALINE written & directed by Rokhaya Marieme Balde

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Docufiction

SEEKING ALINE

YOUR STREET

Documentary

DEINE STRASSE written & directed by Güzin Kar

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 7 min., 2020 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: German PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Güzin Kar, Zurich www.guzin.ch FESTIVALS (SELECTION): Int. Kurzfilmtage Winterthur 2020 / Berlinale 2021 / Vienna Shorts 2021 / Docaviv 2021 / Locarno 2021 / Melbourne Int. Film Festival 2021 / Guanajuato Int. Film Festival 2021 / Semana Internacional de Cine de Valladolid 2021 / AFI FEST 2021

A street in the industrial area of Bonn, faceless, unobtrusive, unfinished. Warehouses, construction sites and washing lines dominate. But little by little the grey present of the street is being charged with its past, which is linked to one of the most painful episodes in the history of reunified Germany. Are public memorials collective remembrance or collective repression?

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BECOMING GIULIA written & directed by Laura Kaehr

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Giulia Tonelli, principal dancer at the Zurich Opera House, returns from maternity leave. She has to fight to find her place and a new balance, between the competitive and extremely demanding world of an elite ballet company and her new family life. The documentary is an unprecedented immersion in the microcosm of a great opera house from 2019–2021, an intimate and committed look at the journey of a woman who reclaims her own body and herself to be back on stage. WORLD RIGHTS: Point Prod, Geneva www.pointprod.ch

Documentary

SPRING 2022

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 90 min. ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, English, French, Italian PRODUCTION: Point Prod, Geneva / SRF / RTS / RSI PRODUCERS: David Rihs, Vanessa Droz

LAURA KAEHR * 1978. Laura Kaehr trained as a professional ballet dancer at the Centre de Danse Rosella Hightower, Cannes. She holds a Master in Transdisciplinarity in art from Zurich University of the Arts and an Advanced Certificate in Film and Screenwriting at UCLA Los Angeles. Her debut short film, 1927, premiered at Locarno’s spring event L’immagine e la Parola in 2014. Her experimental dance film NEW WORLD (2018) won Best Film at the Underexposed Film Festival. She is a screenwriter, director and film choreographer.

COMING SOON FEATUR

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LILA RIBI * 1979. Lila Ribi graduated from École d’Arts appliqués Vevey in 2004, Bern University of the Arts in Fine Arts in 2006, and in 2009 from ECAL in directing. Her short film SPAGHETTI ALLE VONGOLE (2009) premiered at Visions du Réel and won the Grand prix du Jury at FRONTDOC. LE TÉMÉRAIRE (2009) premiered at Locarno Film Festival, and her first feature documentary SILENT REVOLUTION (2016) premiered at Visions du Réel in Nyon.

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 88 min. ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: English, French PRODUCTION: maximage, Zurich / SRF PRODUCERS: Brigitte Hofer, Cornelia Seitler

What happens after death? For years, Lila Ribi films her 100-year-old grandmother Greti. She always has the same answer to Lila’s question: after death there is nothing. The filmmaker sees things differently. She sets off on a journey, finds other perspectives and ultimately no answer. But the certainty that love in life outlasts death.

WORLD RIGHTS: maximage, Zurich www.maximage.ch

Documentary

written & directed by Lila Ribi

WINTER 2021/22

(IM)MORTALS

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(IM)MORTELS

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SPRING 2022

written & directed by Jackie Brutsche

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A research about a family secret, how silence affects next generations and how to break it. Artist, musician, filmmaker and performer Jackie Brutsche does it all with this film.

WORLD RIGHTS: Recycled TV AG, Bern www.rectv.ch

Documentary

LAS TORERAS

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 90 min. ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: Spanish, Swiss-German PRODUCTION: Recycled TV AG, Bern / RECK Filmproduktion, Zurich / SRF PRODUCERS: Madeleine Corbat, Franziska Reck

JACKIE BRUTSCHE * 1977. Jackie Brutsche studied directing and scriptwriting at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK). She directed and wrote several short films THE MAGIC CUT (2006), MENSCHINE (2005) and theatre plays (THE REBEL SPERM) and is known as a multi discipline artist working as filmmaker, musician, performer and visual artist. She toured all over Europe and America with her Garagebands and produced several albums and music videos.

COMING SOON

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Railway stations are like islands, suspended between space and time. In the heat of Cairo, keeping calm helps, in Zurich, air conditioning or dancing. In both places, people are passionately living out their lives at the train station, their little cosmos. Episode by episode, the film consolidates into the collective rhythm of everyday life, uncovering stories from two countries whose shared poetry develops into universal human energy.

AHMED ABDEL MOHSEN * 1974. Ahmed Abdel Mohsen studied Media Sciences and Journalism in Egypt and Film at F + F Schule für Kunst und Design Zurich. He directs and produces documentaries and fiction films.

WORLD SALES: SWITZERLAND Taskovski Films Ltd, London Documentary, 79 min. www.taskovskifilms.com ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, Arabic SCREENPLAY: Sandra Gysi PRODUCTION: RECK Filmproduktion, Zurich / Recycled TV AG, Bern PRODUCER: Franziska Reck

Documentary

SANDRA GYSI * 1969. Sandra Gysi has a Master of Arts in Social Anthropology and Film Studies from the University of Zurich. She directs and produces documentaries and fiction films.

WINTER 2021/22

directed by Sandra Gysi, Ahmed Abdel Mohsen

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MAHATAH – SIDE STORIES FROM MAIN STATIONS

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MY OLD MAN written & directed by Steven Vit

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Over the course of three years, filmmaker Steven Vit follows his father Rudy’s transition from working life to retirement: from his last business trip to the day Rudy begins to adjust to his new life. It is a journey that takes us to three continents and immerses us in unique worlds of contrasts, be it the bustling city of Tokyo, the skyline of Shanghai, the vast Canadian wilderness or the Swiss Alps.

WORLD RIGHTS: Lomotion AG, Bern www.lomotion.ch

Documentary

SPRING 2022

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 90 min. ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: Swiss-German, English PRODUCTION: Lomotion AG, Bern / SRF PRODUCERS: David Fonjallaz, Louis Mataré

STEVEN VIT * 1990. Steven Vit has joint Swiss and Canadian citizenship. After graduating with a Bachelor in Film from Lucerne School of Art and Design (HSLU) in 2014, he gained experience as a production assistant at Lomotion and in the editorial department for fictional film productions at SRF. In 2020 he completed his Master’s degree in Film at Stockholm University of the Arts.

COMING SOON

SUMMER 2022

ONCE WE WERE PITMEN

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WIR WAREN KUMPEL

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written & directed by Christian Johannes Koch, Jonas Matauschek

JONAS MATAUSCHEK * 1987 in Germany. Jonas Matauschek studied photography at the Academy of Fine Arts in Leipzig and is a member of FILZ. In 2021 he received the Kompagnon Fellowship of Berlinale Talents along with Christian J. Koch.

SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Documentary, 90 min. ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: German PRODUCTION: Catpics AG, Zurich / elemag pictures, Leipzig / SRF / ZDF SWISS PRODUCERS: Rajko Jazbec, Dario Schoch, Sarah Born

WORLD RIGHTS: Catpics AG, Zurich www.catpics.ch

Documentary

CHRISTIAN JOHANNES KOCH * 1986. Christian Johannes Koch is a director, screenwriter and lecturer in script development. His work straddles a variety of media and institutional contexts. SPAGAT / ШПAГAТ (2020) was his feature film debut.

Black dust, high-pitched metallic sounds, dark tunnels, strong working men – this is the past. The humorous and heartwarming journey of five miners rediscovering themselves in times of climate change and gender discussions after their workplace, the last underground coal mine in Germany, is finally shut down.

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PAS DE DEUX written & directed by Elie Aufseesser

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Jon moves to New York City for his studies by integrating Columbia University’s diving team while Peter wanders the Jordanian desert, sick and doubting his way of life. Both brothers are tested by their geographic location, often discovering that it can harbor more confinement than freedom. Within these moments of separation the already great distance between them becomes even wider.

WORLD RIGHTS: ToïToï, Geneva elieauf@gmail.com

Documentary

WINTER 2021/22

SWITZERLAND / UNITED STATES Documentary, 84 min. ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: French, English, Mandarin PRODUCTION: ToïToï, Geneva / ToïToï US, Raleigh SWISS PRODUCER: Elie Aufseesser

ELIE AUFSEESSER * 1990. Elie Aufseesser received his MFA in Film from Columbia University (New York) in 2018. He founded ToïToï, an initiative dedicated to producing and promoting films by artists and filmmakers exploring the spaces between video art and cinema, between documentary and fiction. PAS DE DEUX (2021) is his first featurelength film as director and producer.

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THE DRIVEN ONES

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written & directed by Piet Baumgartner

SUMMER 2022

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 90 min. ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: German PRODUCTION: Catpics AG, Zurich / SRF PRODUCER: Sarah Born

WORLD SALES: Autlook Filmsales, Vienna www.autlookfilms.com

Documentary

PIET BAUMGARTNER * 1984. Piet Baumgartner is a visual artist and director. He works transdisciplinarily in film, visual arts and theatre. He studied film directing at the Zurich University of the Arts ZHdK. He is a graduate of the Drehbuchwerkstatt Munich, and worked as an assistant for Frank Castorf and René Pollesch. He was awarded with numerous international film prizes.

They could be the next CEOs of the world. Five students start their studies at the University of St. Gallen. They come from different countries, different backgrounds and have different dreams. They all share the same goal: to excel professionally. They want to change something. For this change they are willing to make personal sacrifices in the hope of achieving something big.

COMING SOON

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WINTER 2021/22

THE LAST CAMPAIGN

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Documentary

written & directed by Lionel Rupp After four years of Donald Trump’s reign, Jonathan Katz travels the American Midwest to get Bernie Sanders, the first “socialist” candidate, elected president of the country. Committed body and soul to a “revolution” through the ballot box, he will see his deepest convictions shaken. During what is, for him as for Bernie, the last campaign, he gets to know a new generation of activists for whom this is only the first.

SWITZERLAND WORLD RIGHTS: Documentary, 103 min. GoldenEggProduction, Geneva www.goldeneggproduction.ch ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: English PRODUCTION: GoldenEggProduction, Geneva / Zooscope Production, Lausanne PRODUCERS: Gabriela Bussmann, Yan Decoppet, Lucas Grandjean

LIONEL RUPP * 1983. Lionel Rupp graduated from the Geneva University of Art & Design (HEAD – Genève). His short films were awarded at various film festivals. He codirected QUAI OUEST (2012) with his brother Adrien Rupp, and was one of the ten directors of HEIMATLAND (2015), selected in competition at Locarno Film Festival. He directed A CAMPAIGN OF THEIR OWN (2017) and codirected NO APOLOGIES (2019), a documentary about the physical and mental siege of black people in precarious situations.

COMING SOON

SPRING 2022

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THE MIES VAN DER ROHES

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An epic family saga in times of modernism, told by the women around the iconic architect Mies van der Rohe. His wife Ada, his daughters Georgia, Manna and Traudel and his lover Lilly Reich seize the opportunities of the new age but also experience the constraints of old patterns. The Golden 20s, the increasingly barbaric 30s and ultimately war. A troubling family story which uses unpublished films, images and documents to create a moral portrait of modernity – from a female perspective. SWITZERLAND Docufiction, 90 min. ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, English CAST: Katharina Thalbach, Anna Thalbach, Rebekka Burckhardt, Ingo Ospelt PRODUCTION: Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion AG, Zurich / SRF PRODUCER: Karin Koch

WORLD RIGHTS: Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion AG, Zurich www.dvfilm.ch

Docufiction

SABINE GISIGER * 1959. Sabine Gisiger studied history in Zurich and Pisa. She worked as a reporter for Swiss Television and has been making documentaries as a freelance filmmaker since 1988. DO IT (2000) received the Swiss Film Prize for Best Documentary, followed by GAMBIT (2005) and YALOM’S CURE (2014) and a nomination for WELCOME TO SWITZERLAND (2017). She is a professor for documentaries at Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK).

written & directed by Sabine Gisiger

IN PRODUCTION

SUMMER 2022

ACTING PAIN

DREAMERS

(working title) by Elena Avdija

by Stéphanie Barbey, Luc Peter

SWITZERLAND Documentary PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Bande à part Films, Lausanne www.bandeapartfilms.com

SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Documentary PRODUCTION: Intermezzo Films, Geneva / Dirk Manthey Film, Hamburg / RTS / ARTE / SWR WORLD RIGHTS: Intermezzo Films, Geneva www.intermezzofilms.ch

WINTER 2022/23

WINTER 2021/22

KEIGEI KAKOCHO

PAPA & DADA by Daniela Ambrosoli

(working title) by Sophie Dascal SWITZERLAND / FRANCE / JAPAN Documentary PRODUCTION: GoldenEggProduction, Geneva / House on Fire, Paris / Aora Pictures, Tokyo WORLD RIGHTS: GoldenEggProduction, Geneva www.goldeneggproduction.ch

SWITZERLAND Animation / Documentary PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Daniela Ambrosoli, Zurich danima@ambrosoli.org

FALL 2022

WINTER 2022/23

STRAY BODIES

ZIMMERWALD

by Elina Psykou

by Valeria Stucki

GREECE / SWITZERLAND / ITALY / BULGARIA Documentary PRODUCTION: Jungle Films, Athens / Contrast Film, Zurich / Anemon Productions, Athens / DocLab, Rome / Red Carpet Productions, Sofia / ERT WORLD RIGHTS: Jungle Films, Athens reklats@hotmail.com

SWITZERLAND Documentary PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Lomotion AG Filmproduktion, Bern www.lomotion.ch

Supporting the theatrical release and distribution via online platforms of Swiss films worldwide. Its aim is to strengthen the visibility and the distribution of Swiss films abroad. The subsidies are granted according to the “Guidelines Funding for the distribution of Swiss films and coproductions in foreign countries”.

For more information please consult our website www.swissfilms.ch A support measure by the Swiss Federal Office of Culture (FOC), administrated by SWISS FILMS. www.bak.admin.ch

WHAT’S NEW IN 2021 – Funding for releases worldwide – Funding for cinema and / or VOD releases – Increase of maximum support per film release – Applications for individual as well as slate funding – No fixed submission deadlines Applications must be submitted by the distributor via the Swiss producer.

Contact : support@swissfilms.ch

SUPPORT MEASURES

DISTRIBUTION SUPPORT

FILM SALES SUPPORT for films from Switzerland

Guidelines and application : www.efp-online.com/en/project_market/fss.php

A scheme by the European Film Promotion (EFP) for the promotion of European films outside of Europe. EFP additionally offers FSS for the promotion of films from Switzerland outside of Europe thanks to new international measures by the Federal Office of Culture, Media Desk Suisse and SWISS FILMS. This support has been confirmed and takes immediate effect.

NOTES

Please consult our website for up-to-date information on our festival attendance. www.swissfilms.ch

SWISS FILMS is supported by

“ I started seeing the stories between the shadows.” HUGO IN ARGENTINA by Stefano Knuchel