SWISS FILMS in Cannes 2018

SWISS 2018 IN CANNES

FILMS

VISIT US AT THE VILLAGE INTERNATIONAL IN CANNES SWISS FILMS Pavilion No. 121 info@swissfilms.ch T +33 (0)4 92 59 00 11

SWISS FILMS Neugasse 6, 8005 Zurich www.swissfilms.ch Published in May 2018 Image campaign by Douglas Mandry

SWISS FILMS AT THE FESTIVAL DE CANNES 2018

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COMPETITION HAPPY AS LAZZARO IMAGE BOOK KNIFE + HEART

9 CANNES CLASSICS 9 HYENAS

5 SEMAINE DE LA CRITIQUE 5 CHRIS THE SWISS 6 SCHÄCHER

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PRODUCER ON THE MOVE MARKET SCREENINGS COMING SOON COMING SOON SHORTS IN PRODUCTION SUPPORT MEASURES

7 SPECIAL SCREENINGS 7 DEAD SOULS 8 POPE FRANCIS – A MAN OF HIS WORD SWISS FILMS TEAM IN CANNES

CATHERINE ANN BERGER Managing Director caberger@swissfilms.ch T +41 76 368 02 65

SELINA WILLEMSE Head of Festivals & Markets swillemse@swissfilms.ch T +41 79 286 51 88

Andreas Bühlmann Consultant Film & First Feature abuehlmann@swissfilms.ch T +41 79 303 58 69

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

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

COMPETITION

HAPPY AS LAZZARO

LAZZARO FELICE

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written & directed by Alice Rohrwacher

Fiction

WORLD SALES: The Match Factory GmbH, Cologne www.the-match-factory.com WORLD PREMIERE: Cannes 2018 INTERNATIONAL PRESS: FILMPRESSPLUS Richard Lormand filmpressplus@aol.com

ITALY / FRANCE / SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Fiction, 120 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Italian CAST: Adriano Tardiolo, Alba Rohrwacher, Tommaso Ragno, Luca Chikovani, Agnese Graziani, Sergi Lopez, Natalino Balasso, Nicoletta Braschi PRODUCTION: Amka Films Productions SA, Savosa / Tempesta srl, Bologna / Pola Pandora Filmproduktions GmbH, Berlin / RSI / Ad Vitam Film Distri­bution, Paris / RAI Cinema

ALICE ROHRWACHER * 1982 in Italy. Alice Rohrwacher studied Literature and Philosophy at Torino University.

Her award-winning debut film CORPO CELESTE (2011) premiered at the Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes; her second feature film THE WONDERS (2014) screened in Competition at the Festival de Cannes and was awarded with the Grand Prix. HAPPY AS LAZZARO is her third feature, coproduced with the Swiss production company Amka Films Productions, and was selected for the Competition in Cannes.

COMPETITION LE LIVRE D’IMAGE

IMAGE BOOK written & directed by Jean-Luc Godard

SWITZERLAND / FRANCE Docufiction, 84 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: French, English, Russian, Arabic PRODUCTION: Casa Azul Films, Lausanne / Ecran Noir Productions, Paris

WORLD SALES: Wild Bunch, Paris www.wildbunch.biz WORLD PREMIERE: Cannes 2018 MORE INFORMATION: casa-azul.ch/livre-dimage

Docufiction

JEAN-LUC GODARD * 1930 in Paris. Jean-Luc Godard is one of the founding members and central figures of the French New Wave movement of the 1960s.

His films enjoy international acclaim and have influenced generations of filmmakers.

Godard has made over 40 films and presented more than 20 in Cannes. His first film BREATHLESS (1959) was considered a masterpiece of the Nouvelle Vague, his last film ADIEU AU LANGUAGE (2014) screened in Competition in Cannes and was awarded with the Jury Prize.

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Do you still rembember how long ago we trained our thoughts? Most often, we went from a dream.

We wondered how, in total darkness colours of such intensity could emerge within us. Image and words.

COMPETITION

KNIFE + HEART

UN COUTEAU DANS LE COEUR

directed by Yann Gonzalez 4

In the heart of the demonic Paris of the late 1970s, Anne made a career by producing pornographic films.

To find the favors of her companion, Loïs, Anne decides to change by financing a much more ambitious film, which she entrusts the direction to Archibald. But a mysterious serial killer thwarts her plans and attacks all the actors involved in the project.

Fiction

WORLD SALES: Memento Films International, Paris WORLD PREMIERE: Cannes 2018 INTERNATIONAL PRESS: Makna Presse Chloé Lorenzi chloe@makna-presse.com T +33 6 08 16 60 26

FRANCE / SWITZERLAND Fiction, 100 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French SCREENPLAY: Yann Gonzalez, Cristiano Mangione CAST: Vanessa Paradis, Kate Moran, Nicolas Maury PRODUCTION: CG Cinéma, Paris / Garidi Films, Geneva / RTS

YANN GONZALEZ * 1977 in France. Yann Gonzalez is an award-winning french filmmaker and is a habitué in Cannes. He presented four of his short films at the festival:

BY THE KISS (2006), ENTRACTE (2007) and JE VOUS HAIS PETITES FILLES (2008), at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs as well as LES ASTRES NOIRS (2009) at the Semaine de la Critique. His first feature YOU AND THE NIGHT (2013) also premiered at the Semaine de la Critique.

SEMAINE DE LA CRITIQUE E FIR UR

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CHRIS THE SWISS

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written & directed by Anja Kofmel

SWITZERLAND / CROATIA / GERMANY / FINLAND Documentary, 90 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, Swiss-German, English, Spanish, French PRODUCTION: Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion AG, Zurich / Nukleus Film, Zagreb / MA.JA.DE. Filmproduktion, Leipzig / IV Films, Helsinki

WORLD SALES: Urban Distribution Inter­national, Montreuil www.urbandistrib.com WORLD PREMIERE: Cannes 2018 INTERNATIONAL PRESS: Rachel Bouillon T +33 (0)6 74 14 11 84 rachel.bouillon@orange.fr

Anidoc

ANJA KOFMEL * 1982 in Lugano. Anja Kofmel studied animation at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. Her bachelor’s degree film CHRIGI (2009) has been awarded at the Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur and became a huge festival hit. Since 2010 she has been working as animation and documentary filmmaker and illustrator.

CHRIS THE SWISS is her highly expected first featurelength anidoc film.

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Croatia, January 1992. In the midst of the Yugoslav Wars, Chris, a young Swiss journalist is found dead under mysterious circumstances. He was wearing the uniform of an international mercenary group. Anja Kofmel was his cousin. As a little girl, she used to admire this handsome young man; now a grown-up woman, she decides to investigate his story, trying to understand what really was the involvement of Chris in the conflict …

SEMAINE DE LA CRITIQUE

SCHÄCHER written & directed by Flurin Giger 6

An unknown guest enters the house of an old woman and an old man. His visit is unexpected and changes everything forever.

Fiction

WORLD PREMIERE: Cannes 2018 INTERNATIONAL PRESS: Flurin Giger T +41 79 668 62 56 info@gigerbrueder.com

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 30 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: German CAST: Ernst Jacobi, Vilmar Bieri, Lisa Brand, Levi Giger PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Giger Brüder, Malans www.gigerbrueder.com MORE INFORMATION: www.schaecher-film.com

FLURIN GIGER * 1995 in Lucerne. Flurin Giger studied acting at EFAS (European Film Actor School) in Zurich and founded the production company Giger Brothers Studio together with his brother Silvan Giger.

He works as both actor and director. Giger’s first short film RUAH (2016) celebrated its world premiere at the Mostra Internazionale d’Arte Cinematografica Venice SCHÄCHER is his second short film and was selected as one of ten short films for the renowned Semaine de la Crititque in Cannes.

SPECIAL SCREENINGS LES ÂMES MORTES

DEAD SOULS written & directed by Bing Wang

FRANCE / SWITZERLAND Documentary, 495 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Chinese PRODUCTION: Les Films d’Ici, Paris / Adok Films, Geneva / CS Productions, Paris

WORLD SALES: Doc & Film International, Paris www.docandfilm.com WORLD PREMIERE: Cannes 2018 INTERNATIONAL PRESS: RV Presse Viviana Andriani viviana@rv-press.com Aurélie Dard aurelie@rv-press.com T +33 6 80 16 81 39

Documentary

BING WANG * 1967 in China. Bing Wang studied photography at Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts in Shenyang and cinematography at Beijing Film Academy.

Wang belongs to China's most important documentary filmmakers and is known for THE DITCH (2010), selected for the Mostra Internazionale in Venice, THREE SISTERS (2012), screened and awarded in Venice and ’TIL MADNESS DO US PART (2013), programmed in Venice, Toronto and Rotterdam. MR. FANG (2017) won the Golden Leopard in Locarno.

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In Gansu Province, northwest China, lie the remains of countless prisoners abandoned in the Gobi Desert sixty years ago. Designated as ultra-rightists in the Communist Party’s Anti-Rightist campaign of 1957, they starved to death in the Jiabiangou and Mingshui reeducation camps.

The film invites us to meet the survivors of the camps to find out firsthand who these people were, the hardships they were forced to endure and what became their destiny.

SPECIAL SCREENINGS

POPE FRANCIS – A MAN OF HIS WORD directed by Wim Wenders

Documentary

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A historic non-fiction film intended to be a personal journey with Pope Francis, rather than a biographical documentary about him. The Pope’s ideas and his message are central to this documentary, which sets out to present his work of reform and his answers to today’s global questions from his deep concern for the poor, his involvement in environmental issues and social justice.

WORLD SALES: Focus Features, Los Angeles www.focusfeatures.com WORLD PREMIERE: Cannes 2018 INTERNATIONAL PRESS: Charles McDonald charles@charlesmcdonald. co.uk T +44 77 85 24 63 77 Nicoletta Billi nicolettabilli@gmail.com T +39 33 32 43 27 77

ITALY / SWITZERLAND / GERMANY / FRANCE Documentary, 90 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian SCREENPLAY: Wim Wenders, David Rosier PRODUCTION: CTV – Centro Televisivo Vaticano, Vatican City / Célestes Images, Lugano / Solares Fondazione delle Arti, Parma / Neue Road Movies GmbH, Berlin / Decia Films, Paris / Fondazione Solares Suisse, Lugano / PTS Art's Factory s.r.l., Rome

WIM WENDERS * 1945 in Germany. Wim Wenders belongs to the pioneers of the New German Cinema during the 1970’s and is especially known for his films PARIS, TEXAS (1984) and WINGS OF DESIRE (1987), both screened and awarded at the Festival de Cannes. Wenders' awardwinning films include the documentaries BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB (1999), PINA (2011) and THE SALT OF EARTH (2014).

CANNES CLASSICS HYÈNES

HYENAS written & directed by Djibril Diop Mambéty

SWITZERLAND / FRANCE / SENEGAL Fiction, 110 min., 1992 ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Wolof CAST: Mansour Diouf, Ami Diakhate PRODUCTION: Thelma Film AG, Undervelier / ADR Productions, Paris

WORLD RIGHTS: Thelma Film AG, Undervelier meier@thelmafilm.ch WORLD PREMIERE: Cannes 1992

Fiction

DJIBRIL DIOP MAMBÉTY 1945–1998. Djibril Diop Mambéty was a Senegalese film director, actor, composer and poet of international acclaim. He was one of the most influental and central figures of African cinema and is especially known for his films TOUKI BOUKI (1973), awarded with the Prix de la critique internationale in Moscow and HYENAS (1992), which premiered in Competition at the Festival de Cannes in 1992.

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In Colobane, people expect the return of Linguère Ramatou, a former local girl now rumored to be richer than the World Bank. But her generosity has its conditions: she offers a check of ten billion for the death of Dramaan Drameh who refused to admit that he was the father of her child 30 years ago. “Life made made me a whore, now I’m turning the world into a brothel” she tells the citizens of Colobane.

Katrin Renz is looking for German and Austrian coproducers for THE MASTERTHIEF, her second fiction film with Swiss director Lisa Brühlmann.

FILMOGRAPHY (selection) THE MASTERTHIEF

by Lisa Brühlmann (Switzerland, Germany, Austria) fiction film in development KARMA HOUDINI

by Remy Blaser (Switzerland, Luxemburg, Austria) fiction film in financing MONTE LIBERTÀ

by Stefan Jäger (Switzerland, Austria) fiction film in preproduction LITTLE JOE

by Jessica Hausner (Austria, UK, Germany, Switzerland) fiction film in financing

tellfilm

BLUE MY MIND (2018)

by Lisa Brühlmann (Switzerland), fiction film ANIMALS (2017)

by Greg Zglinski (Switzerland, Austria, Poland), fiction film BIG & LITTLE (2016)

by Stefan Jäger (Switzerland), fiction film

KATRIN RENZ

PRODUCER ON THE MOVE

Katrin Renz runs the production company tellfilm with her business partner Stefan Jäger in Zurich, as well as the German branch of tellfilm, situated in Berlin. Renz has successfully produced feature films, feature documentaries and documentary series for cinema and Swiss TV. Her production ANIMALS, directed by Greg Zglinski, was presented at the Berlinale in 2017. Lisa Brühlmann’s BLUE MY MIND had its world premiere in the section “New Directors” in San Sebastiàn in 2017 and has already screened at more than ten festivals around the world. The film has won numerous awards, among others the award for Best Director at Filmfestival Max Ophüls Preis and three Swiss Film Awards in 2018. BLUE MY MIND was sold to six countries in three continents.

MARKET SCREENINGS

#FEMALE PLEASURE written & directed by Barbara Miller 12

#Female Pleasure embarks on a journey to discover female sexuality in the 21�� century. In the context of the world religions, courageous women break their silence regarding one of the greatest mysteries and taboos of our time: female pleasure. The film spans the globe to accompany five extraordinary women, revealing their successful battle for a relaxed and balanced relationship between women and men, as well as for self-determined and fulfilling sexuality.

Documentary

WORLD SALES: CAT & Docs, Paris www.catndocs.com

SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Documentary, 97 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, English, French, Japanese PRODUCTION: Mons Veneris Films GmbH, Zurich / Das Kollektiv für audiovisuelle Werke GmbH, Zurich / Indi Film GmbH, Stuttgart / SRF / ARTE / RTS / RSI

BARBARA MILLER * 1970 in Winterthur. Barbara Miller worked as assistant director and editing assistant for Christian Frei on the Academy Award nominated WAR PHOTOGRAPHER (2001). She is especially known for her award-winning documentary FORBIDDEN VOICES (2012), which was selected for numerous renowned international festivals such as Visions du Réel and IDFA.

MARKET SCREENINGS

ELDORADO written & directed by Markus Imhoof

SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Documentary, 92 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, French, Italian, Kurdish, Swiss-German, Arabic, Amharic PRODUCTION: Thelma Film AG, Undervelier / SRF / zero one film GmbH, Berlin / BR

WORLD SALES: Films Boutique, Berlin www.filmsboutique.com WORLD PREMIERE: Berlinale 2018

Documentary

MARKUS IMHOOF * 1941 in Winterthur. Markus Imhoof is the director of the award-winning documentary MORE THAN HONEY (2012), which was screened and awarded at numerous film festivals worldwide. It was awarded as Best Documentary at the Swiss Film Award as well as at the German Film Award LOLA. Imhoof is also known for his fiction film THE BOAT IS FULL (1981), which was nominated for an Academy Award, Foreign Language Film.

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Drawing inspiration from his personal encounter with the Italian refugee child Giovanna during World War II, Markus Imhoof tells how refugees and migrants are treated today: on the Mediterranean Sea, in Italy and in Switzerland.

MARKET SCREENINGS

FORTUNA written & directed by Germinal Roaux 14

Fortuna, a young Ethiopian teenage girl, has had no news of her parents since arriving in Lampedusa, Italy. Together with other refugees, she is given shelter for the winter in a Swiss catholic hospice at an altitude of over 2000 meters. While they wait for their fate to be decided by the Swiss authorities, Fortuna meets Kabir, a 26-year-old African refugee, and falls desperately in love. Their relationship develops in secret, till the day Kabir disappears.

Fiction

WORLD SALES: Loco Films, Paris www.loco-films.com WORLD PREMIERE: Berlinale 2018

SWITZERLAND / BELGIUM Fiction, 106 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: French, Amharic CAST: Kidist Siyum Beza, Bruno Ganz, Patrick D’Assumçao, Yoann Blanc, Assefa Zerihun Gudeta, Ina Tosca, Pierre Banderet, Simon André, Philippe Grand’Henry PRODUCTION: VEGA Production, Lausanne / Need Productions, Brussels / RTS / SRG SSR / Proximus, Evere

Germinal Roaux * 1975 in Lausanne. Germinal Roaux is a photographer and filmmaker. He works exclusively in black & white. His first feature LEFT FOOT RIGHT FOOT (2013) won a Special Mention at PalmSprings International Film Festival, the Bayard d’or in Namur and two Swiss Film Awards: Best Cinematography and Best Performance in a Supporting Role. His second feature FORTUNA received two Awards at the Berlinale 2018: The Grand Prix of the Generation 14plus International Jury & the Crystal Bear for Best Film.

MARKET SCREENINGS

MARIO directed by Marcel Gisler

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 119 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: Swiss-German, German SCREENPLAY: Thomas Hess, Marcel Gisler, Frédéric Moriette CAST: Max Hubacher, Aaron Altaras, Jessy Moravec, Jürg Plüss, Doro Müggler, Andreas Matti, Joris Gratwohl PRODUCTION: Triluna Film AG, Zurich / Carac Film AG, Bolligen / SRF / SRG SSR / Teleclub

WORLD SALES: Films Boutique, Berlin www.filmsboutique.com NATIONAL PREMIERE: Solothurn Film Festival 2018

Fiction

MARCEL GISLER Born in 1960, Marcel Gisler has been living in Berlin since 1981, where he studied Drama and Philosophy at the Freie Universität Berlin and works as producer, screenwriter and director as well as a lecturer at the DFFB Berlin. Gisler is especially known for his award-winning films F. EST UN SALAUD (1999), ROSIE (2013) and ELECTROBOY (2014), which premiered at the Locarno Festival and received numerous awards. MARIO won two Swiss Film Awards: Best Actor and Best Performance in a Supporting Role.

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Mario has fallen in love for the first time, with Leon, the new striker from Germany, who could pose a threat to Mario’s chances of advancing to the premier league.

Before long, their relationship is discovered by their team members and rumours begin to spread. Mario realises this jeopardizes his career as a professional football player, but he does not want to lose Leon at any price.

He has to make a decision.

MARKET SCREENINGS

WHERE ARE YOU, JOÃO GILBERTO? directed by Georges Gachot 16

The film sets out in the footsteps of German writer Marc Fischer who obsessively searched for the last musical legend of our time, the founding father of Bossa Nova, Brazilian musician João Gilberto. Fischer described his journey in a book, Hobalala, but committed suicide one week before it was published. By taking up Marc Fischer’s quest, following his steps one by one, thanks to all the clues he left us, we pursue João Gilberto to understand the history, the very soul and essence of Bossa Nova.

Documentary

WORLD SALES: Doc & Film International, Paris www.docandfilm.com INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: DOK.fest Munich 2018 NATIONAL PREMIERE: Visions du Réel Nyon 2018

SWITZERLAND / FRANCE / GERMANY Documentary, 107 min., 2018 ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, Portuguese, French, English SCREENPLAY: Georges Gachot, Paolo Poloni PRODUCTION: Gachot Films, Zurich / Idéale Audience. Paris / NEOS Film, Munich / BR / ARTE / RTS / SRF MORE INFORMATION: www.hobalala-film.com

GEORGES GACHOT * 1962 in France. Joint Swiss and French citizenship.

Georges Gachot studied piano and musicology and has been working as a film director since 1990. He is known for his documentaries on musicians, composers and performers, like MARTHA ARGERICH, EVENING TALKS (2002) and his trilogy on Brazilian music: MARIA BETHÂNIA, MUSICA É PERFUME (2005), RIO SONATA (2010) and O SAMBA (2014).

With WHERE ARE YOU, JOÃO GILBERTO? he achieved a new narrative form between fiction and documentary.

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written & directed by Jacqueline Zünd 18

Parents split up, a family falls apart. Two separate worlds emerge from what once was considered a unity.

In constant transition, children now travel back and forth between two separate homes. This film approaches their reality and focuses on how fragile, but also how brave, smart and funny children perceive their situation – six of them invite us into their worlds apart.

Documentary

WORLD RIGHTS: Real Film GmbH, Zurich jacqueline.zuend@real.ch www.real.ch

SWITZERLAND Documentary, 90 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, French PRODUCTION: Real Film GmbH, Zurich / SRG SSR

JACQUELINE ZÜND * 1971 in Zurich. Jacqueline Zünd attended the Ringier School of Journalism and LIFS (London Inter­national Film School). Her docu­ mentary GOODNIGHT NOBODY (2010) won numer­ous awards such as Best Newcomer film at Visions du Réel Nyon and a special mention at DOK Leipzig, her last film ALMOST THERE (2016) premiered at IDFA and was awarded for Best Editing at the Swiss Film Award 2018.

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BAGHDAD IN MY SHADOW

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directed by Samir

SWITZERLAND / GEMANY / UNITED KINGDOM Fiction, 105 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: English, Arabic SCREENPLAY: Samir, Furat Al Jamil CAST: Haytham Abdulrazaq, Zahraa Ghandour, Shervin Alenabi, Andrew Buchan, Kerry Fox, Kae Bahar, Waseem Abbas, Ali Daim Maliki PRODUCTION: Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion AG, Zurich / Coin Film, Cologne / Ipso Facto Productions, London / SRF

WORLD SALES: Global Screen GmbH, Munich www.globalscreen.de

Fiction

SAMIR * 1955 in Baghdad, raised in Switzerland. Samir belongs to Switzerland’s most acclaimed filmmakers. He cofounded the production company Dschoint Ventschr in 1994 and has been directing and producing both fiction and documentary films. After his renowned documentaries BABYLON 2 (1993), FORGET BAGHDAD (2002) and the award winning IRAQI ODYSSEY (2014), which premiered at TIFF and was selected for Berlinale Panorama 2015, Samir returns with a fiction film set among Iraqi exiles in London.

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Taufiq, an old failed writer, Amal, a wife in hiding, and Muhanad, a clandestine gay IT-specialist all meet at Abu Nawas, a cosy café and popular hangout for Iraqi exiles in London. Instigated by the preacher of a Salafist mosque, the writer’s nephew Nasseer, a fanatic religious youth, attacks his uncle and turns everyone’s life upside down.

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CRONOFOBIA directed by Francesco Rizzi

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Michael Suter is a lonely guy, constantly in motion, escaping his true self. During the day, he travels through Switzerland, creating new identities and incognito evaluating the quality of customer service in shops and hotel rooms, while at night, he is secretly observing the life of another lonely person: Anna, a widow struggling with complicated grief. But this fragile balance is soon destroyed, when Anna finds out about Suter’s dark secret.

WORLD RIGHTS: Imago Film, Lugano www.imagofilm.ch

Fiction

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SWITZERLAND Fiction, 93 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Italian SCREENPLAY: Francesco Rizzi, Daniela Gambaro CAST: Vinicio Marchioni, Sabine Timoteo, Leonardo Nigro, Adele Raes, Jean-Pierre Gos, Monica Budde, Joachim Aeschlimann, Jasmin Mattei, Giorgia Salari PRODUCTION: Imago Film, Lugano / RSI

FRANCESCO RIZZI * 1978 in Switzerland. Francesco Rizzi studied Art History at the University of Fribourg and film at the Roma Film Academy.

CRONOFOBIA is his first feature-length fiction film.

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CURRY WESTERN

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SUMMER 2018

directed by Kamal Musale

SWITZERLAND / UNITED KINGDOM / INDIA Fiction, 105 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: English SCREENPLAY: Kamal Musale, Cédric Basso, Robert Appleby CAST: Gia Sandhu, Christopher Shyer, Sylvain Reymond PRODUCTION: Louise Productions Vevey / Flick the Switch, London / Curry Western Productions, Mumbai

WORLD RIGHTS: Louise Productions Vevey www.louiseproductions.ch

Fiction

KAMAL MUSALE The Swiss-Indian filmmaker Kamal Musale is a writerdirector graduate of the National Film and Television School in England. He has made over thirty short, feature and documentary films that have been showcased at festivals worldwide, including Cannes and Locarno. His feature BUMBAI BIRD (2017) won several awards. He is especially known for his documentary MILLIONS CAN WALK (2014), co-directed with Christoph Schaub and the feature ALINE (2003) which screened at the Locarno Festival.

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Sheela, an English activist of Indian origin, learns that her father has died, devoured by a tiger! Despite her hatred for this father who returned to India thereby abandoning her and her mother, Sheela and her husband go to India to sell the property she inherited. When they arrive, they encounter Bindu, a white hippie, who declares himself to be her father’s spiritual son, and who claims his right for the property. Not without charming Sheela …

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SUMMER 2018

CADAVRE EXQUIS

directed by Viola von Scarpatetti

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Is love free? Sara and Olaf can no longer avoid the question. Confined to a motel room after one of their shows, the two musicians awkwardly attempt to save their tumultuous relationship, transporting us for one night only into a romantic and dramatic universe of the 1980s.

WORLD RIGHTS: Innovative EYE, Muttenz www.innovative-eye.ch

Fiction

FREE FROM YOU

SWITZERLAND / CANADA Fiction, 74 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French SCREENPLAY: Viola von Scarpatetti, Simon Pelletier-Gilbert CAST: Simon Pelletier-Gilbert, Viola von Scarpatetti, Sylvio Arriola, Caroline Courtois Schirmer, Angelo Dell’Aquila PRODUCTION: BIVIO Films, Binningen / Earthling Productions, Geneva / Films Émoi, Montreal

VIOLA VON SCARPATETTI * 1987 in Basel. Viola von Scarpatetti studied acting at the European Film Actor School in Zurich and works as actress, director and screenwriter.

She has directed several short films such as ANNE (2017) and usually also acts in her own films. She also plays the leading role in FREE FROM YOU, which is her first feature-length film.

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HANNES BAUMGARTNER * 1983. Hannes Baumgartner studied film at F+F and Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK).

His award-winning short film TENERIFFA (2012) was honored with the Zurich Film Award and selected for festivals such as Max Ophüls Prize in Saarbücken and the International Short Film Festival Winterthur.

MIDNIGHT RUNNER is his first feature film.

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 92 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: Swiss-German SCREENPLAY: Stefan Staub, Hannes Baumgartner CAST: Max Hubacher, Annina Euling, Sylvie Rohrer, Christophe Sermet, Saladin Dellers, Luna Wedler PRODUCTION: Contrast Film Bern GmbH, Bern / SRF / Teleclub

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The true drama about a well-known top athlete, who evolves into a serial offender: The Swiss marathon runner Jonas Widmer is looking for a way to overcome his tragic past and as a result, becomes more and more entangled in an ominous double life.

WORLD RIGHTS: Contrast Film Bern GmbH, Bern www.contrastfilm.ch

Fiction

directed by Hannes Baumgartner

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MY LITTLE ONE

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directed by Frédéric Choffat & Julie Gilbert 24

An urgent plea from Jade, with whom they once shared a passionate bond, brings two European men, Alex and Bernardo, to an unexpected encounter in the Arizona desert, in Navajo Nation. They are introduced to the harsh reality of Jade’s life by her precocious, free-spirited 10 year-old daughter, Frida. Their views on life, love and even death are about to change forever.

Fiction

WORLD RIGHTS: Intermezzo Films, Geneva www.intermezzofilms.ch

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 100 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: English, French SCREENPLAY: Julie Gilbert, Frédéric Choffat, Jihane Chouaib CAST: Anna Mouglalis, Mathieu Demy, Vincent Bonillo, Ruby Matenko, John Doe PRODUCTION: Intermezzo Films, Geneva / RTS / Les films du Tigre Sàrl, Geneva

FRÉDÉRIC CHOFFAT * 1973 in Morocco. Joint Swiss and French citizenship Frédéric Choffat studied film at ECAL and cofounded Les films du Tigre with Julie Gilbert. He is known for MANGROVE (2011) and the award-winning REAL LIFE IS ELSEWHERE (2006), which premiered in Locarno Cineasti del presente.

JULIE GILBERT * 1974 in France. Julie Gilbert studied French and literature.

Co-writer and codirector of several films with Frédéric Choffat, including MANGROVE (2011), in Competition at Locarno Festival.

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WINTER 2018/19

(working title) directed by Basil Da Cunha

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 120 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: Portuguese-based Creoles and pidgins, Portuguese SCREENPLAY: Basil Da Cunha, Martin Drouot, Karim Bel Kacem CAST: Michel David Pires Spencer, Marco Joel Fernandes, Alexandre Da Costa Fonseca, Lara Cristina Cardoso PRODUCTION: Thera Production, Lausanne / RTS

WORLD RIGHTS: Thera Production, Lausanne www.thera-production.ch

Fiction

BASIL DA CUNHA * 1985 in Morges. Joint Swiss and Portuguese citizenship.

Basil da Cunha received his BA in Cinema at the HEADGenève in 2012 and has been working as lecturer for the renowned filmschool since his graduation. He is known for his award-winning shorts NEXT DOOR (2009), screened in Competition in Locarno as well as for SUNFISH (2011) and THE LIVING ALSO CRY (2012) both presented at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs in Cannes. His first feature AFTER THE NIGHT (2013) also premiered at the Quinzaine.

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Spirra, a young hoodlum who has just left boarding school, meets up with his old friends in Reboleira, a Lisbon slum slated for demolition. Giovanni, the leader, tries to convince the group to steal a stash of cocaine held by Kikas, one of the Reboleira drug lords. But Spirra falls in love with Yara, a neighborhood girl, thus slipping away from Giovanni. The group’s fate will soon be intertwined with that of the slum and its inhabitants.

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COMING SOON

D

ECTE XP

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D

FALL 2018

PEARL

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written & directed by Elsa Amiel 26

48 hours from the final of an international female bodybuilding championship. Lea Pearl is set to compete for the prestigious title of Miss Heaven, to which she has devoted the last four years of her life. Her mentor Al, a former bodybuilding star, keeps a jealous watch over her, in the hopes that thanks to his Pearl, he can once again be in the spotlight. But Lea’s past catches up with her, just a few hours from the final, when Ben shows up with their 6-year-old son she has not seen in four years.

Fiction

WORLD SALES: MK2 Films, Paris mk2films.com

FRANCE / SWITZERLAND Fiction, 85 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: French, English CAST: Julia Föry, Peter Mullan, Arieh Worthalter, Vidal Arzoni PRODUCTION: Unité de Production, Paris / Bande à part Films, Lausanne / RTS

ELSA AMIEL * 1979 in Paris. Elsa Amiel has worked as assistant director for SAINT LAURENT (2014) which screened in Competition at the Festival de Cannes as well as for renowned directors Raoul Ruiz, Mathieu Amalric and Noémie Lvovsky. Amiel is also known as an actress and for her short films FACCIA D’ANGELO (2007) and ELSEWHERE (2010). PEARL is her first feature- length film.

COMING SOON

F RE IR

E FIR UR

FEATU ST

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FEAT ST

ANTOINE RUSSBACH * 1984 in Geneva. Antoine Russbach studied screenwriting and directing in Belgium at IAD (Institut des Arts de Diffusion de LouvainLa-Neuve). His diploma short film GOOD BOYS (2009) screened in competition at the International Short Film Festival Clermont-Ferrand. Russbach also worked as screenwriter and has been involved in several collective projects and workshops. THOSE WHO WORK is his first featurelength film.

SWITZERLAND / BELGIUM WORLD SALES: Fiction, 100 min.

Be For Films, Brussels ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: www.beforfilms.com French SCREENPLAY: Antoine Russbach, Emmanuel Marre CAST: Olivier Gourmet, Adèle Bochatay, Pauline Schneider, Delphine Bibet, Michel Voïta PRODUCTION: Box Productions sàrl, Lausanne / Novak Productions, Brussels / RTS / RTBF / Teleclub

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Frank loses his job following a serious professional mistake. Telling his wife is impossible. He decides to do some soul-searching and ends up calling all of his values into question.

Fiction

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directed by Antoine Russbach

SUMMER 2018

E

THOSE WHO WORK

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CEUX QUI TRAVAILLENT

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COMING SOON

D

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D

SUMMER 2018

ZONE ROUGE

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directed by Cihan Inan 28

A mild summer night in a beautiful home. The former circle of friends meets for the first time after college graduation for an after party, following a class meeting.

Above the joy of the reunion, the presence and the past are interacting. In the seemingly superficial chatter old themes glimmer through and over the exuberant mood lies a dark shadow. The “cause” lies 25 years back and was part of the reason for the sudden break-up.

Fiction

PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Abrakadabra Films AG, Zurich www.abrakadabra.ch

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 90 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGES: German, Swiss-German, French, Turkish SCREENPLAY: Cihan Inan, Alexander Seibt, Uwe Lützen CAST: Chantal Le Moign, Michael Neuenschwander, Siir Eloglu, Nicolas Rosat, Christopher Buchholz, Marie Popall, Helmut Mooshammer

CIHAN INAN * 1969 in Burgdorf. Cihan Inan studied german language and philosophy at University of Bern and worked as independent theatre director in Switzerland, Germany and Austria before he started to write and direct films. Inan has been appointed artistic director at Konzert Theater Bern since 2017. His first feature 180° (2010) was picked up at several festivals and awarded Best Script, Best Directing, Best Supporting Actress, Best Music. ZONE ROUGE is his second feature.

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SUMMER 2018

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 8 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French CAST: Joël Hefti, Marie Wyler PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Basile Vuillemin, Geneva basile.vuillemin@gmail.com

ECTE XP

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Short Fiction

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A man uses an automated funeral home company to bury his mother.

ECTE XP

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written & directed by Basile Vuillemin

COMING SOON SHORTS

DISPERSION

FRAMEWORK

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 15 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French SCREENPLAY: Julien Bouissoux CAST: Jules Balekdjian, Yahya Boudjelloul, Yanis Richard, Martin Swabey PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Florian Burion, Vevey florian@octuorfilms.ch

Short Fiction

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FALL 2018

E

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A mysterious man exits the freeway and drives out into the French rural landscape. There, he crosses paths with a group of teenage boys hanging out at the local soccer field. After a few beers and common experiences shared, the man invites the boys to follow him to an unknown destination. Can they really trust this charismatic stranger?

ECTE XP

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EMPREINTES directed by Jasmin Gordon

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SUMMER 2018

A young man finds shelter inside a cornfield. There, he meets a little girl and her father: the landowner.

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ECTE XP

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 8 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French CAST: Chase Ndika, Mara Pucino, Roland Vouilloz PRODUCTION AND WORLD RIGHTS: Box Productions, Lausanne www.boxproductions.ch CANNES 2018: Short Film Corner

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E

COMING SOON SHORTS

TERRE written & directed by Raphaël Meyer

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Short Fiction

LAND

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Short Fiction

SUMMER 2018

E

SWITZERLAND Fiction, 12 min.

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE: French SCREENPLAY: Francesca Scalisi CAST: Thierry Romanens, Selma Keller PRODUCTION: DOK MOBILE, Fribourg / RTS WORLD RIGHTS: DOK MOBILE, Fribourg www.dokmobile.ch

ECTE XP

D

E

THE HEDGEHOG’S DILEMMA LE DILEMME DU PORC-ÉPIC written & directed by Francesca Scalisi After a dazzling career as a sportsman, Jean, 45 years old, goes from job to job, without any satisfaction. At the same time he coaches his daughter Lea, rising star of competitive diving.

The day of an important competition, an unexpected event is going to change the relationship between them.

SPRING 2019

A FEW DAYS IN THE SUN

MARE

by Mauro Mueller, director of UN MUNDO PARA RAÙL

UNITED STATES / SWITZERLAND Fiction PRODUCTION: Harmony Road Entertainment, New York / Fidelio Films, Zurich / dlbfilm, New York

by Andrea Staka, director of CURE – THE LIFE OF ANOTHER and DAS FRÄULEIN

IN PRODUCTION

SPRING 2019

SWITZERLAND / CROATIA Fiction PRODUCTION: Okofilm Productions, Zurich / Dinaridi Film, Zagreb

SUMMER 2019

PARADISE WAR

SHIPBREAKER

(working title)

by Niklaus Hilber, director of AMATEUR TEENS

by Tim Fehlbaum, director of HELL

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SPRING 2019

SWITZERLAND Fiction PRODUCTION: A Film Company GmbH, Zurich / Das Kollektiv GmbH, Zurich / SRF / Teleclub / Superfilm Filmproduktions GmbH, Vienna WORLD SALES Trust Nordisk

SWITZERLAND Fiction PRODUCTION: Vega Film AG, Zurich

SPRING 2019

WINTER 2018/19

THE GIRL AND THE SPIDER

ZWINGLI

DAS MÄDCHEN UND DIE SPINNE

by Ramon & Silvan Zürcher SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Fiction PRODUCTION: Beauvoir Films, Geneva / Komplizen Film GmbH, Berlin

by Stefan Haupt, director of THE CIRCLE and SAGRADA – THE MYSTERY OF CREATION

SWITZERLAND / GERMANY Fiction PRODUCTION: C-Films AG, Zurich / SRF / Eikon Film Südwest, Stuttgart

SUPPORT MEASURES

DISTRIBUTION SUPPORT NON-EUROPEAN COUNTRIES Supporting the theatrical release of Swiss feature films in ten selected non-European countries.

Its aim is to strengthen the visibility and the distribution of Swiss films outside of Europe. The subsidies are granted according to the “Guidelines for Distribution Support of Swiss films in non-European countries”.

Applications must be submitted by the distributor via the Swiss producer.

Film Sales Support FSS is a scheme by the European Film Promotion (EFP) for the promotion of European films outside of Europe.

With support by the Swiss Federal Office of Culture, Media Desk Suisse and SWISS FILMS, FSS is also available to European and Swiss sales companies selling Swiss films at selected festivals and markets: Sundance FF, TIFF, Tribeca FF, Hot Docs Toronto, Hong Kong Int’l Film & TV Market, Asian Film Market, American Film Market. Applications must be submitted online by the world sales company.

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

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A support measure by SWISS FILMS in collaboration with the Swiss Federal Office of Culture (FOC). www.swissfilms.ch/en/distribution Contact: support@swissfilms.ch

FILM SALES SUPPORT

VOD SUPPORT

Supporting the distribution of Swiss films on important international VOD platforms.

DISTRIBUTION SUPPORT EUROPEAN COUNTRIES Supporting the theatrical release of Swiss feature films in Europe.

Its aim is to strengthen their visibility and to generate financial returns to the Swiss producer. The subsidies are granted according to the “Guidelines VOD Support”. Applications must be submitted by the Swiss producer.

Its aim is to strengthen the visibility and the distribution of Swiss films in Europe.

The subsidies are granted according to the “Guidelines Funding for the distribution of Swiss films and co-productions in foreign countries”. Applications must be submitted by the European distributor via the Swiss producer.

A support measure by SWISS FILMS in collaboration with the Swiss Federal Office of Culture (FOC). www.swissfilms.ch/en/vod Contact: support@swissfilms.ch

A support measure by the Swiss Federal Office of Culture (FOC), administrated by SWISS FILMS. www.bak.admin.ch Contact: support@swissfilms.ch

VISIT US AT OUR STANDS AT: Annecy Mifa Locarno Festival Toronto International Film Festival Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Market Berlinale European Film Market

SWISS FILMS is supported by

“J’ai trouvé une perle.”

Anne dans UN COUTEAU DANS LE COEUR de Yann Gonzalez, coproduit par Garidi Films, Compétition