Cannes 2022
with four Swiss world premieres
19.04.2022
In the renowned parallel sections of the Cannes Film Festival 2022, no less than four feature-length films from Switzerland will celebrate their world premieres. Three productions from French-speaking Switzerland will be shown in the 54th edition of the Quinzaine des réalisateurs. Another entry from German-speaking Switzerland was selected for the ACID section. The films were all made by established Swiss filmmakers who have already won numerous international awards and who are now making an impressive comeback at the Croisette with new, strong productions.
LA DÉRIVE DES CONTINENTS (AU SUD) is the name of the latest political feature film by the busy Swiss director Lionel Baier. The Swiss-French co-production (Bandita Films, Geneva | Les films du Losange, Paris) with Swiss actress Ursina Lardi in a leading role will be shown in the Quinzaine section. In 2017, Baier presented LA VANITÉ in Cannes (ACID) and in 2018 ONDES DE CHOC at the Berlinale (Panorama), two of his greatest international successes.
Also at the Quinzaine, Geneva resident Elena Riera Lopez will screen her debut feature EL AGUA. The Swiss-Spanish-French co-production was produced by Alina Film (Geneva) and - like LA DÉRIVE DES CONTINENTS (AU SUD) - co-produced with RTS. Elena Riera Lopez succeeded internationally with her acclaimed short films PUEBLO (2015, Quinzaine, Cannes) and LOS QUE DESEAN (2018, Locarno) and in 2018 was selected by Cinéfondation La Résidence for the project development of EL AGUA.
Finally, DE HUMANI CORPORIS FABRICA, a French-Swiss-American co-production by Swiss-born French director and anthropologist Verena Paravel, will be screened at the Quinzaine. The documentary was co-produced by Max Karli and Pauline Gygax (Rita Productions, Geneva). With the César-winning and ©Oscar®-nominated animated film MA VIE DE COURGETTE, the pair of producers launched one of Switzerland's biggest film successes at Cannes (Quinzaine) in 2016.
99 MOONS, the eagerly awaited third feature film by Zurich director Jan Gassmann, was selected for the ACID Cannes. The renowned Association du Cinéma indépendant pour sa diffussion (ACID) selects only 9 feature films each year to premiere at the Palais du festival. Gassmann was successful at the Berlinale (Panorama) in 2016 with the abysmal love film EUROPE SHE LOVES, for which he was nominated for the European Film Award. For his latest Swiss German-language feature film, Gassmann worked for the first time with producers Reto Schaerli and Lukas Hobi (Zodiac Pictures, Zurich). With ACHTUNG FERTIG CHARLIE (2003), DIE KLEINE HEXE (2016) and the international cinema hit HEIDI (2015), the producer duo is responsible for several of the most successful Swiss feature films worldwide in recent years.
In addition to the (so-called) "official Swiss co-productions" already mentioned here, this year's programme includes other film productions that were made in collaboration with a Swiss production company but without public funding (or only a marginal share of less than 10% of the budget). Among these films is UNDER THE FIG TREE by Tunisian director Erige Sehiri, whose film was co-produced by Akka Films in Geneva. The Tunisian-French-Swiss production will also be screened in the Quinzaine. As he has done many times in previous years, Geneva producer Dan Wechsler has also co-produced films in this year's Cannes Competition programme with his company Bord Cadre films (Geneva). This year it is TRIANGLE OF SADNESS by Ruben Ostlund as well as TCHAIKOVSKY'S WIFE by Kirill Serebrenikov.
+++ An update on the Swiss films in Cannes as well as on the activities of SWISS FILMS within the Cannes Film Festival will follow at the beginning of May +++
The 75th Cannes Film Festival will take place from 17 to 28 May 2022. SWISS FILMS, the promotion agency for Swiss film, operates the Pavillon Suisse in the Village international at the Marché du Film in Cannes.