Golden Leopard and many more awards for Swiss films in Locarno

The film “Abrir puertas y ventanas” by Milagros Mumenthaler was honoured with the Golden Leopard at the 64th Festival de film Locarno, which came to an end on August 13, 2011.

15.08.2011

The film “Abrir puertas y ventanas” by Milagros Mumenthaler was honoured with the Golden Leopard at the 64th Festival de film Locarno, which came to an end on August 13, 2011. In addition, the leading actress of the Swiss-Argentine film, Maria Canale, won the Leopard for Best Actress. Fernand Melgar’s documentary film “Vol special” was honoured with two awards: the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury, endowed with CHF 20,000, and the Junior Jury Award, endowed with CHF 6,000. And in the Critics’ Week section Ulrich Grossenbacher won the SRG SSR Preis endowed with CHF 8,000 for his film “Messies, ein schönes Chaos.”

The short film "L'ambassadeur & moi" by Jan Czarlewsky won the Golden Pardino for the Best Swiss Short Film in the Leopards of Tomorrow Competition; and "Le tombeau des filles" by Carmen Jaquier won the Silver Pardino in the same section. And Jean Guillaume Sonnier's film "A quoi tu joues" won the Action Light Prize for the Best Swiss Newcomer.

Switzerland was strongly represented at this year's festival in Locarno with three entries screened in the International Competition as well as other films in every festival section. This has not been the case for a long time. Furthermore, the winner of the festival's main award, "Abrir puertas y ventanas," which depicts three sisters who return to live in their family home following the death of their grandmother and are faced with issues concerning their existence and future, is now the third Swiss film in the past thirty years to be honoured with the festival's prestigious Golden Leopard, following "Höhenfeuer" by Fredi M. Murer (1985) and "Das Fräulein" by Andrea Staka (2006). After having won the Golden Leopard in the Filmmakers of the Present Competition for his film "La forteresse" in 2008, Fernand Melgar has also found recognition among the juries in Locarno with his politically charged film "Vol spécial," which sheds light on the deportation of "sans papiers" immigrants from Switzerland.

Zurich, August 15, 2011

 

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