Strong presence for documentary films in Munich

05.05.2010

Swiss documentary films are not only numerous but also represented prominently at the Munich International Documentary Film Festival, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year (May 5-12, 2010). Christian Frei will present “Space Tourists” in the international competition. His film ranks among eight internationally renowned productions nominated for the Documentary Film Award of the Bayerischer Rundfunk and Telepool GmbH, endowed with EUR 10,000.

The portrait film “Daniel Schmid – Le chat qui pense” by Pascal Hofmann and Benny Jaberg about the Swiss screen-writer who passed away in 2006 (production: T&C Films, Zurich), as well as the documentary film about life in the devastated Gaza after the war, “Aisheen (Still Alive in Gaza)” by Nicolas Wadimoff (production: Akka Films, Geneva) and the film “David Wants To Fly” by German filmmaker David Sieveking, a coproduction of Dschoint Ventschr in Zurich, had already drawn a great deal of attention at the Berlinale and will now be screened in Munich. Peter Liechti will round off the strong Swiss presence in Munich with “The Sound Of Insects”. Liechti, who will preside over the jury of the international competition, was honoured with, among others, the renowned Prix Arte 2009 for Best Documentary Film from the European Film Academy for his film.



From the beginning, the DOK.fest in Munich declared itself as a festival for the Munich audience with an emphasis on the promotion of creative documentary films. Together with the Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film and the “Duisburger Filmwoche”, it ranks internationally among the most important festivals for the genre of documentary film in German-speaking countries. Films from Switzerland have become a festival fixture over the years. Last year Fernand Melgar’s “La Forteresse” was screened in the international competition.



Zurich, May 4, 2010

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