Five Swiss Film Projects Nominated for the Second “Filmmaker Award”

Dubai, UAE, September 21, 2016:   The Association for the Promotion of Film in Switzerland (Verein zur Filmförderung in der Schweiz) has nominated five Swiss film projects for the “Filmmaker Award”. The prize of CHF 100,000 in production funding is aimed at supporting local filmmaking in Switzerland and is now being awarded for the second year running. The award will be presented at the IWC gala dinner on 24 September 2016 as part of the Zurich Film Festival.

“The Swiss film scene boasts a remarkable degree of creativity and a wealth of ideas that really make it stand out. But sadly, it is difficult for many projects to reach completion due to the lack of sufficient film funding available,” says Georges Kern, CEO of IWC Schaffhausen. This shortcomingis addressed by the Association for the Promotion of Film in Switzerland, an institution that was founded in 2015 by IWC CEO Georges Kern, along with co-directors of the Zurich Film Festival Nadja Schildknecht and Karl Spoerri, film director Marc Forster and the CEO of Ringier, Marc Walder. With the introduction of the “Filmmaker Award”, the association has established a prize unlike any other in Switzerland. The CHF 100,000 prize was awarded for the very first time last year, with the money being split between two projects: “Und morgen seid ihr tot” (Tomorrow You’ll Be Dead) by Bernhard Burgener, Norbert Preuss and Michael Steiner received CHF 75,000 of the funding, while CHF 25,000 was allocated to the film “Europe, she loves” by Jan Gassmann and Lisa Blatter. The latter film premieres in Switzerland on 25 September and will be in cinemas as of 29 September.

The competition is open to Swiss filmmakers working on film and documentary projects of at least 60 minutes in length that require peak production or post-production financing. The jury from the association has now narrowed down the wide-ranging assortment of submissions to five finalists: the films making it to the final round are “Lasst die Alten sterben” (Let the Old Die), “Fortuna” and “Papa Moll”, along with the documentary films “Das Blue Note Projekt” (The Blue Note Project) and “Beyond the Bolex”. The award ceremony will take place at the IWC gala dinner on 24 September 2016 as part of the Zurich Film Festival, where IWC Schaffhausen will be appearing as a co-partner.

THE FIVE NOMINEES AND THEIR PROJECTS

“Lasst die Alten sterben” (Let the Old Die)
Production: David Fonjallaz, Louis Mataré (Lomotion AG)
Director: Juri Steinhart
Kevin is young, has lots of friends and is full of drive. Still, he feels empty. He and his friends decide to do something about this, so they start a commune based on the model from the 1980s. The group strive to experience genuine sensations and want out of the world of consumerism
and normal conventions. In his tragicomedy, Juri Steinhart has created an entertaining film with strong characters
with whom viewers can identify. The project features
Max Hubacherin the lead role and is currently in the post--production phase.

“Papa Moll”
Production: Reto Schaerli, Lukas Hobi (Zodiac Pictures Ltd)
Director: Manuel Flurin Hendry
Papa Moll has been a familiar figure in Swiss children’s lives for over six decades now. The loving yet somewhat clumsy father and husband is a popular, well-known character throughout Switzerland. And now the success story of the Moll family is hitting the big screen in a film directed by Manuel Flurin Hendry and featuring actor Stefan Kurt in the lead role. The film is expected to hit Swiss cinemas towards the end of 2017.

“Fortuna”
Production: Ruth Waldburger – Jean-Marie Gindraux (VEGA Production – NEED Productions)
Director: Germinal Roaux
The black-and-white images in “Fortuna” portray two worlds colliding: African refugees on the Simplon Pass. Fortuna is a 14-year-old girl from the border region between Ethiopia and Eritrea. A detour has led her to Switzerland, where she is to spend the winter at above 2,000 metres with a Catholic community in the Simplon Monastery until a decision has been made on her residence permit in Switzerland. Bruno Ganz shines in his role as head of the monastery.

“Das Blue Note Projekt” (The Blue Note Project)
Production: Hercli Bundi, Susanne Guggenberger (Mira Film GmbH)
Director: Sophie Huber
This film tells the story of the legendary American jazz record label. The emphasis is on the music and the musicians, portraying the timeless drive for artistic expression in everything from the emergence of groundbreaking Blue Note classics to the modern-day search for new forms of expression. Director Sophie Huber makes jazz accessible to wide-ranging audiences in the film with her keen musical sense.

“Beyond the Bolex”
Production: Werner Schweizer, Camilo Lara (HME)
Director: Alyssa Bolsey
In the USA, filmmaker Alyssa Bolsey discovers that her great-grandfather Jacques Bolsey invented the popular Bolex movie camera 80 years ago. In a journey portrayed through the eye of the Bolex and using Jacques’ diary as a guide, she discovers her own roots as she traces the footsteps of her great-grandfather. This sensitive documentary on the revolutionary movie camera is currently in the production stage.