Talking to ...
Director TIM FEHLBAUM on his Oscar contender SEPTEMBER 5 and festivals as a launch pad
16.01.2025
Swiss filmmaker Tim Fehlbaum is celebrating international success with his latest film SEPTEMBER 5. The media thriller premiered at the Venice International Film Festival last year, received a Golden Globe nomination and is being considered as an Oscar contender for Best Picture. The film has been showing in cinemas in Switzerland and Germany since last week and will soon be screened at the Solothurn Film Festival.
What made you want to become a filmmaker?
I have had this desire for a very long time; nothing else was ever an option for me. Already as a child, I would make stop-motion films with plasticine during the school holidays.
Are there any directors that inspired you?
Pivotal for me were the interviews in François Truffaut’s book “Le Cinéma selon Alfred Hitchcock”, which I devoured in my youth along with the films to go with it.
How did the idea for your latest feature film “SEPTEMBER 5” in collaboration with co-author Moritz Binder come about?
We started working on this material more than four years ago. First, we did extensive general research on the events in Munich. The initial impetus for telling the story from the perspective of the media was a research conversation with eyewitness Geoffrey Mason – played by John Magaro. At the time, he was 28 years old and experienced firsthand in the TV control room how they, as a team of sports reporters, had to switch to crisis reporting. His memories of this 22-hour marathon of live reporting were so fascinating to hear that we decided to tell the film exclusively from this perspective. Using the influence of media reporting on world political events as a topic seemed particularly relevant to us, especially from today’s perspective.
Were there key moments at festivals or was it because of awards for your earlier works? In other words, how did one thing lead to another on the way to you receiving a Golden Globe nomination for “SEPTEMBER 5”?
Film festivals have always been crucial: my debut HELL at the Munich Film Festival, on the Piazza in Locarno and at the Solothurn Film Festival were certainly key moments. And the screening of SEPTEMBER 5 last summer in Venice and Telluride was also important. Festivals are a terrific platform for generating attention for a film.
How does working on a big production like your latest film differ from working on independent productions like your earlier films “TIDES” and “HELL”?
We shot SEPTEMBER 5 at Bavaria Studios in Munich. Actually, there weren’t that many differences, except that this time I worked with an almost exclusively English-speaking cast. In terms of language, that was certainly more of a challenge. Luckily, I had most of my trusted team behind the camera, the same team I had worked with on my two previous films, and that gave me valuable support.
As a native of Basel, to what extent do you follow the film scene in Switzerland?
I follow it with great interest and enthusiasm, because Swiss cinema is currently developing in a very exciting direction. For me, DRII WINTER by Michael Koch is one of the most moving feature films in recent years. I recently saw the short film EDGE OF SPACE by Jean de Meuron from Basel, which has made the shortlist for an Oscar for Live Action Short Film; the film completely blew me away. And there is also a lot going on in the series format.
Could you imagine directing a series?
Even though I love watching series, my goal for the next project is to make a film for the cinema again. For me, the cinema is still the most magical place to experience a film. But you never know.
Are you seen as a Swiss filmmaker or does Switzerland not play a role in your day-to-day work?
I see myself as a Swiss filmmaker through and through. My first two films were Swiss coproductions, and I was lucky to have the amazing Ruth Waldburger on board as a producer. What’s more, I live in Switzerland and develop my projects from here.
In your opinion, what are the distinctive characteristics of Swiss filmmaking?
I find that hard to define. The boundaries are becoming increasingly blurred, including those between European and American cinema. I think what counts is the story and the vision, more than the country of production of the films.
At the moment, everyone is talking about “SEPTEMBER 5”, but what new material are you working on?
I read a lot of screenplays and work on my own ideas at the same time, but the PR tour for my new film is absorbing much more of my time than I could have imagined. Which is nice, of course, but I’m looking forward to tackling something new again.