CPH:DOX

Producers Palmyre Badinier, Sarah Born, Louis Mataré are participating at CPH:FORUM, the financing and co-production event dedicated to facilitating the development and financing of visually strong creative documentary projects with international potential.

Exploring reality

Palmyre Badinier is joining forces with producer-director Dea Gjinovci and former RTS commissioning editor Irene Challland to found LUMINA PICTURES, a new Swiss production house that will foster talents and forms, with a special interest for hybrid forms and impactful films. 

“As a producer I am interested in explorative ways of portraying reality. In Copenhagen, I will present the final cut of THE BEAUTY OF THE DONKEY by Dea Gjinovci. A Swiss-Kosovarian hybrid film that plays with the childhood memories of Dea’s father to heal the war losses and exile wounds. We are looking forward to meet sales agents, distributors and programmers as the film will be ready soon.” 

Felipe Monroy’s baroque docufiction SIMON THE ABSURD confronts Bolivar himself to his legacy from Caracas to the Colombian pacific Coast communities. The film is currently in production and the producer has some strong sneak peeks to share with broadcasters for feature-length slots pre-buy.

RUE DU PRÉ-DE-LA-REINE by Juan Manuel Vegas (production Alva Films) is an experimental fable about coexistence shot in 16 mm portraying a Swiss village through the eyes of a Ukrainian family. The film is in development, and Badinier would like to explore French-speaking coproduction.

What about Scandinavia?

At CPH:DOX, Producer Sarah Born of Catpics hopes to meet potential Scandinavian partners: “Coproductions between Switzerland and the Scandinavian countries are extremely rare. Nevertheless, I admire Nordic filmmaking and would love to set up a coproduction with Denmark, Sweden or Norway. I am also very interested in producing documentaries for a young audience.”

Catpics is working on several exciting new projects: QUEEN OF THE STONE AGE, directed by David Bernet is about one of the most successful female archaeologists who is rewriting the history of the European Stone Age. DA ZERO - GARDI HUTTER by Miriam Ernst is a portrait of the first female clown Gardi Hutter, who has made a name for herself worldwide. 

CONTRABANDO traces the history of coffee and cigarette smuggling between Switzerland and Italy after the Second World War. Emerging director Magnus Langset has already made a short film about the subject, and Catpics is now producing a longer version. Director Valerie Blankenbyl’s FUTURE LIVING revolves around private towns in Honduras. Catpics has already produced Blankenbyl’s THE BUBBLE.

Art, Heat, Drugs and Sanctions

Producer Louis Mataré, co-founder of Lomotion production company will represent four projects in Copenhagen: The Swiss-German coproduction KOSMOPOLITEN by Heidi Specogna and Thomas Riedelsheimer portrays artists from the Goldstein studio whose works are celebrated on international art stages. The film shows how they challenge social norms with impressive art projects and bring the topics of inclusion and diversity to life. For Louis Mataré it is “a powerful plea for the recognition of talent beyond social barriers.”

HEAT by Swiss writer and director Jacqueline Zünd (in collaboration with SRF and ARTE) is a cinematic exploration of heat as a condition. Focusing on the Persian Gulf as the hottest region on the planet, the film paints a panorama of human stories, moods, and survival strategies. Both films are in production and Lomotion is looking for sales agencies.

OPEN MY MIND by Marcel Wyss is already in postproduction and ready to celebrate its world premiere. The writer/director himself embarks on an experiment with psychoactive drugs to confront his fears and self-doubt: a radical, multi-layered journey in search of reconciliation and healing. For this documentary, Mataré ist looking for a festival premiere and sales agency.

SANCTIONED LIVES by Ariane Lüthi and Thomas Isler is still in development and looking for coproducers and financing. The story is about an Iranian couple of gallery owners, an Afghan entrepreneur and a Syrian activist, all of them struggling with the absurd consequences of sanctions. They aim to advance their home countries but get caught up in a high-risk game involving international money flows.

INTRO DOX with Charlotte Rey

Producer Charlotte Rey from Alva Film will participate in the INTRO:DOX programme for emerging filmmakers and producers, working on their first or second non-fiction feature. For Charlotte, the program is an opportunity to meet potential financial and sales partners: “I hope to learn more about financing options and international funds. My goal is to gain a better understanding of the market, meet other emerging producers and build up a network.”

The producer brings with her the first feature film M (working title) directed by Sarah Kiani. This intimate project is based on the life of the director, whose father is Pakistani and whose mother is Swiss. Through the director's own memories, archive footage and anonymous stories re-enacted by actors, the film explores how cultural power relations are played out in mixed couples through everyday scenes.

Swiss coproductions at the festival

Four Swiss coproductions are selected to screen in the festival programme: 
ON THE BORDER by Gerald Igor Hauzenberger and Gabriela Schild (AT/CH/DE/UK), Swiss coproduction: Mira Film
GEN_ by Gianluca Matarrese (FR/IT/CH), Swiss coproduction: Elefant Films Geneva
FIRE OF WIND (FOGO DO VENTO, PT/CH/FR) by Marta Mateus, Swiss coproduction: Casa Azul Films
A SISTERS’ TALE by Leila Amini (CH/FR/IR), Swiss production: Mira Film, La Belle Film
GIRLS & GODS by Arash T. Riahi & Verena Soltiz (AT/CH), Swiss coproduction: Amka Films Productions