Locarno Film Festival 2008: Romands on the upswing
16.07.2008
With Lionel Baier’s fiction film “Un autre homme” in the International Competition and Fernand Melgar’s documentary film “La forteresse” in the Filmmakers of the Present Competition, two young filmmakers from Vaud will be placed in the limelight at the 61st Locarno International Film Festival (August 6-16, 2008). In addition, two films will celebrate their world premieres on the Piazza Grande in conjunction with this year’s Swiss Cinema Day (August 12): the latest opus by Genovese animation filmmaker Georges Schwizgebel “Retouches” and “Marcello Marcello” by director Denis Rabaglia from Valais. While Swiss actor and director Dani Levy, who lives in Berlin, is a member of the international jury, musician Franz Treichler (“The Young Gods”) is a member of the jury for Filmmakers of the Present and Fulvio Bernasconi, whose film “Fuori dalle corde” ran in last year’s competition, is a member of the jury for the short film competition of the Leopards of Tomorrow.
Other facets of this year’s particularly extensive film productions from the French-speaking region of Switzerland can be seen in the Ici et ailleurs programme, which features two further premieres: Dominique de Rivaz’s fiction film “Luftbusiness”, produced by CAB Productions in Lausanne; and Jacqueline Veuve’s documentary film “Un petit coin de paradis”. Michel Van Zele’s film “Freddy Buache, passeur du 7ème Art” about the founder and long-standing director of Cinémathèque Suisse will also be screened in the Ici et ailleurs programme. In the Play Forward section, which is devoted to experimental film, the festival is presenting works by two other filmmakers from the Romandy: the one-hour film “Walpurgis” by Genovese director Frédéric Choffat, as well as the two short films “Invisible To The Rest” and “A Place We Call Home” by video artist Emmanuelle Antille from Vaud.
The 19th Critic’s Week will open with the film “NO MORE SMOKE SIGNALS” by Fanny Bräuning and also present Erich Schmid’s artist portrait “Bill – das absolute Augenmass”. The mountaineering drama “Nordwand” by German director Philipp Stölzl (in co-production with Triluna Film, Zurich) will makes its premiere on the Piazza Grande on Saturday August 9. Danilo Catti’s documentary film “Giù le mani” about the SBB Cargo strike in Bellinzona, will be presented outside the competition in the Filmmakers of the Present.
While 13 short films will participate in the Swiss competition of the Leopards of Tomorrow, other Swiss short films can be seen in the Ici et ailleurs and Play Forward sections: the film “Monsieur Sélavy – The Way It Is” by Peter Volkart; the film “Trip On A Piece Of Wood“ by Sebastian Gandt; and Pierre Coulibeuf’s “A Magnetic Space”. In celebration of its 40th anniversary, the Swiss group for animated film (GSFA) will also present its “Cuisine d’animation 2” programme on DVD, featuring 14 animation films made between 1999 and 2006.
Six documentary, four fiction films and one short film will be screened in the Appellations Suisse series. These films have made a significant contribution to Swiss filmmaking in the past year (cf. press communiqué, July 8, 2008).
Zurich, July 16, 2008
The 19th Critic’s Week will open with the film “NO MORE SMOKE SIGNALS” by Fanny Bräuning and also present Erich Schmid’s artist portrait “Bill – das absolute Augenmass”. The mountaineering drama “Nordwand” by German director Philipp Stölzl (in co-production with Triluna Film, Zurich) will makes its premiere on the Piazza Grande on Saturday August 9. Danilo Catti’s documentary film “Giù le mani” about the SBB Cargo strike in Bellinzona, will be presented outside the competition in the Filmmakers of the Present.
While 13 short films will participate in the Swiss competition of the Leopards of Tomorrow, other Swiss short films can be seen in the Ici et ailleurs and Play Forward sections: the film “Monsieur Sélavy – The Way It Is” by Peter Volkart; the film “Trip On A Piece Of Wood“ by Sebastian Gandt; and Pierre Coulibeuf’s “A Magnetic Space”. In celebration of its 40th anniversary, the Swiss group for animated film (GSFA) will also present its “Cuisine d’animation 2” programme on DVD, featuring 14 animation films made between 1999 and 2006.
Six documentary, four fiction films and one short film will be screened in the Appellations Suisse series. These films have made a significant contribution to Swiss filmmaking in the past year (cf. press communiqué, July 8, 2008).
Zurich, July 16, 2008