The star of New Swiss Cinema Alain Tanner, recipient of the Pardo d’onore in 2010, discussed the context, ambitions and musing that led to the birth of a movement which, in the 1970s, put Switzerland on the cinematic map in spite of, or perhaps thanks to, the limited means at its disposal. The conversation traced Alain Tanner’s intellectual and artistic path by highlighting its formative chapters: jazz, neorealism, surrealism, expatriation, May 1968 and his work for Swiss television.