FIFDH

FIFDH Impact Days brings together NGOs, filmmakers, impact funders and other impact practitioners to develop joint strategies for films tackling current social issues. 

On March 9, Impact Days will be dedicated to Swiss projects. The Swiss Focus programme serves to facilitate networking and dialogue between local filmmakers working in the impact sector and international guests.  

Each year, four Swiss film projects are presented, projects that are open to collaboration on a national or international level. Impact Days has selected the following projects for this year’s pitching sessions: 

• A SEARCH FOR LOVE by Carlotta Piccinini – First Hand Films  
• IMAGINE PEACE by Fabian Chiquet – Milan Film 
• ONE STEP CLOSER by Mehran Tamadon – Box Productions 
• TO THE MOON AND BACK by Elisa Gomez Alvarez – Rita Productions 

Impact Accelerator 

Charlotte Ducos, Head of Industry and Documentary Consultant at SWISS FILMS, will give a brief presentation that takes a look back on the previous impact campaigns for six films supported by the Impact Accelerator, managed by SWISS FILMS in partnership with The StoryBoard Collective.  

Thus far, these projects have been selected for the Impact Accelerator: 

• JE SUIS NOIRES by Rachel M’Bon (Juliana Fanjul, AKKA FILMS) 
• PEACE FOR NINA by Zhanna Maksymenko-Dovhych (Dea Gjinovci, ASTRAE)  
• URBAN GENESIS by Dodo Hunziker (Corinna Dästner, DOKLAB) 
• REBELION DE LA MEMORIA by Joel Jent (Sophia Rubischung, AARON FILMS) 
• CHESS BEHIND BARS by Ivo Zen (Kaleo Labelle, LA BELLE FILMS) 
• A FREE DAUGHTER FOR A FREE KYRGYSZTAN by Leigh Iacobucci (TRO TRO PRODUCTIONS) 

Focus on human rights  

The FIFDH festival programme also showcases Swiss film productions that address human rights issues. 

Dea Gjinovci’s THE BEAUTY OF THE DONKEY will be screened in the Creative Documentaries Competition. The documentary films FREEDOM - SHEWIT'S DESTINY by Anne-Frédérique Widmann, ELEPHANTS & SQUIRRELS by Gregor Brändli and SOLIDARITY by David Bernet will be screened in the Focus Competition. 

The Swiss-South African feature film LAUNDRY by Zamo Mkhwanazi has been selected for the Fiction Competition, while DON’T LET THE SUN by Jaqueline Zünd and WHERE GOD IS NOT by Mehran Tamadon (2023) will be screened out of competition. Maurizius Staerkle Drux’s THOSE WHO HEAR THE SUN is one of the six works selected for screening in theshort film selection. 

The festival programme for young audiences will also screen the feature-length animation film OLIVIA AND THE INVISIBLE EARTHQUAKE BY WHOM, as well as the two short films OSTRICH by Marie Kenov and MAHLZEIT by Lynn Gerlach.