Launching on May 18th as part of a full Swiss focus on the Marché du Movie, the Solothurn Film Festival Goes to Cannes marks the first collaboration between the former Swiss festival and the Cannes market, but also the first for many talents and producers rigorously chosen for the occasion.
Two of Switzerland’s leading documentary filmmakers, Jacqueline Zünd, winner of the 2019 Crystal Bear, nominated for “The place We Belong”, and Nicholas Steiner, director of “Above & Under”, ranked among Selection Critic Peter Debruge’s Top 10 Films of 2015 are expected to capture the attention of clients, sales agents and programmers with their star-studded fiction debuts.
In “You consider the angels, Mr. Drowak,” Steiner has hired Karl Markovics, star of the 2008 Oscar winner “The Counterfeiters,” rising acting talent Lune Wedler (“All the Light I Can See,” “Je suis Karl”), Lars Eidinger (“Babylon Berlin,” “All the Light I Can See”) and Dominique Pinon (“Delicatessen”, “Amélie”).
“After two cinematic documentaries screened around the world and a Netflix original series (“Dig Deeper-The Disappearance of Birgit Meier”), I was excited to create this stylistically and technically demanding film with a unique cast and my trusted core team who has been with me since the beginning”, says Steiner about his film in the editing phase and scheduled for delivery in 2025.
With “Do You Think in Angels, Mr Drowak”, we enter a world where creativity has no limits”, says Niccolò Castelli, who took the helm of the celebrated Solothurn Movie Competition as creative director in 2022.
“In this dark comedy, shot in black and white, we are delighted to see how two seemingly distant fantasy characters layer together, driven by related desires. Appearance, scenography, digital camera, rhythm: cinema is a dream that offers us a lot of life and emotion. It’s a pleasure to enter Mr. Drowak’s universe,” he says.
The film is co-produced by Germany’s Zieglerfilm Baden-Baden and Switzerland’s Tellfilm, with broadcasters SWR, SRF/SRG SSR, ARTE, WDR and HR, in collaboration with MMC Fiction and Version Tanja, with support from MFG, DFFF, Federal Workplace of Culture. (FOC), Filmstiftung NRW, Area Basel Stadt, Zürcher Filmstiftung, Area Basel Land, FFF Bayern, Suissimage and FOCAL Stage Pool.
In “Don’t let Solar (catch you crying)” Starring Levan Gelbakhiani (“And Then We Danced”) and Karidja Touré (“Girlhood”), Zünd uses his documentary experience to weave a level-headed drama about the fragile nature of relationships.
“The film portrays a world that is just a small step away from our reality, not only in terms of human relationships, but also in relation to the premise: people have turned night into day, which is a possible consequence of our current crisis climate change,” feedback producer Louis Mataré of Lomotion. “The world of the film is set in a city marked by the harsh edge of brutalism, but not as densely populated as it should be. Framed by raw, barren concrete buildings, the photographs reproduce the interior landscapes of individuals, making their fragility and vulnerability palpable,” he continues.
“Along with his first foray into fiction, Zünd carries his fascinating approach to wanting the limits of contemporary human life,” adds Castelli.
Filmed almost entirely at night in Milan, Genoa and São Paulo, the Lomotion production is co-produced by the Italian Casa delle Visioni, with the support of the Swiss broadcaster SRF, FOC, Zürcher Filmstiftung, Berner Filmförderung, Kulturfonds Suissimage and Italian tax credit.
Swiss distributor Filmcoopi holds the property rights.
In a novel, try to bring together the experience and narrative of Swiss and South African stories, “The Laundry Room” marks the first co-production between the renowned Swiss product Akka Movies, present at Un Sure Regard in Cannes with “The Shameless”, and South Africa (Kude Media). Joining the partners are Frenchman KinoElektron and veteran North American indie icon Jim Stark (“Triangle of Unhappiness”, “Down By Legislation”).
South African Zamo Mkhwanazi’s feature debut received support from FOC, RTS, Succès Passage Antenne, Suissimage, as well as the National Movie and Video Foundation of South Africa and tax incentives.
Set in 1968, “The Laundry” is a moving exploration of the human experience during the period of apartheid in South Africa,” said producer Philippe Coeytaux. Selection.
“It delves deeply into the emotional and psychological penalties of systemic discrimination, highlighting the often tragic penalties of this coverage. By shedding light on this dark chapter of humanity, the film not only reminds us of the importance of fighting injustice, but also testifies to the lasting power of hope and solidarity in the face of adversity.”
Digging deeper, Solothurn’s creative director says, “it’s a vivid and important story, told by someone who can understand the protagonists’ feelings, because she (Mkhwanazi) was immediately engaged because it’s her mother’s family story. . Amid desires for freedom and disenfranchisement, it is an especially important narrative at this time, reminding us with so many feelings how we cannot take the achievement of democracy and civil rights without any consideration.”
About that “Advertising” by experienced writer, director and producer Thomas Imbach (“Nemesis”, “Mary Queen of Scots”) innovates as “probably the first European film to be made 100% in digital production”, says the director.
“It will be interesting to encounter director Thomas Imbach’s ever-changing appearance in his long and profitable review,” notes Castelli. “With ‘The Publicity’ he experiments with revolutionary cinematic storytelling, taking a literary work set in the 1920s (Arthur Schnitzler’s 1924 novel ‘Fräulein Else’), composed entirely of the protagonist’s ideas, and transforming it in a film shot. completely in the studio, due to the experience in 3D projection.”
The project starring Deleila Piasko and Milan Peschel is produced by Thomas Imbach Image, with support from broadcasters SRF, SRG SSR, Status Movies, FOC, Basel Movie und Media Arts, Suissimage Cultural Fund and Zurich Movie Foundation.
“Al Baseer-The Blind Boatman,” by Iraqi Ali Al-Fatlawi, is an environmental odyssey, transporting the viewer to the Iraqi swamps. “It combines stunning landscapes with cultural heritage, to illuminate environmental and cultural challenges”, says the director whose ambition is “to authentically paint the resilience of this historic ecosystem, collaborating intensely with native communities”.
For Castelli, “Al Baseer – The Blind Boatman” stands out as another side of Switzerland.
“Switzerland was and still is a place of immigration, the world is present in Switzerland and there is constant change, a search for roots and dialogue”, and we can see this very clearly in the role of Ali Al-Fatlawi”, says the president of competition. .
The co-production between Swiss Samir, Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion, Ali Al-Fatlawi and Iraqi Karada Movies was chosen in 2022 for Cannes Atelier 2022.
With the Goes to Cannes initiative, Castelli hopes to achieve several goals, both for Solothurn, which welcomes more than 60,000 visitors every year, and for Swiss cinema and technology as a whole.
“Our mission is to bring Swiss cinema closer to the public, to bring the Swiss film industry closer to viewers and to provide this space for dialogue and change,” he explains.
“In the current context of cinema, where festivals and their markets are increasingly essential for the publicity and circulation of a film, we imagine that an organization comparable to ours, with our name and our contacts, can play a role in serve the films to have a career abroad for world premieres and sales and consequently to have greater visibility among the Swiss public. The more a film successfully circulates around the world, the more the careers of authors and their films are facilitated in Switzerland.”
“Furthermore,” he continues, “the number of international co-productions has increased exponentially compared to 10-20 years ago, and it is interesting for us to develop the opportunities for change with the countries with which Switzerland essentially co-produces the most. We want to bring these promising works to the Marché de Cannes,” he says.
Brief summary of tasks:
“Al Basheer – The Blind Boatman,”(Ali Al Fatlawi)
Blind boatman Ayoub lives in the marshes of southern Iraq. In the future, he meets a mysterious and stunning lady and falls in love with her. However, no one believes it exists. When even his neighbors turn away from him, he commits a deadly act in desperation.
“Do you consider angels?” (Nicolas Steiner)
Lena (played by Luna Wedler) is extremely optimistic, unabashedly open, and believes unconditionally in love and kindness. When she applies to be a writing teacher as part of a “workplace” social initiative, she is unaware of the depth of the only client who has her course in mind: formerly homeless man Hugo Drowak (Karl Markovics). Repeatedly caught off guard by Lena’s seemingly naive openness, the misanthropic and old drunk unexpectedly captivates her with his exceptional writing talent. He slowly but surely starts to lose his balance. However, Drowak wouldn’t be Drowak if it was easy to break.
“Don’t let the Solar (catch you crying),” (Jacqueline Zünd)
In a world almost like ours, Jonah works for a company that provides human relationships. When he is hired to serve as Nika’s father, he begins to lose control of his tightly managed life. A slightly dystopian drama set in a place of unbearable heat, where people are determined by human warmth.
“Advertising”, (Thomas Imbach)
In the 1920s, Lili’s summer escape takes a sudden turn when she is pressured by Dorsday, a predator from her past. To avoid squandering her family’s honor, she faces the frightening specter of abuse.
“The laundry room,” (Zamo Mkhwanazi)
South Africa, 1968. Khuthala hates the family laundry. But as the apartheid government cracks down on black business ownership, Khuthala is torn between pursuing his musical desires and fighting the injustice that threatens the business that is his family’s only means of support and support.