There's history and there's the future, there's young talents and there's great auteurs. Whether it's looking ahead or glancing at the past, Switzerland is present in Locarno. More specifically, Swiss cinema confirms its place and central role in a 72-year old history, as part of the competitions of Locarno 2020 - For the Future of Films and the trips down the Festival's memory lane.
26 competing directors. That is the amount of Swiss filmmakers who will be part of The Films After Tomorrow and Pardi di domani on August 5-15. There are ten interrupted projects competing for the Pardo 2020, and twelve short films in the running for the Pardino d'oro and Pardino d'argento. 41 projects - nearly 50% of the yearly Swiss output - were submitted for the Films After Tomorrow selection. And as always, there's a vast assortment of competing short films.These are the 10 projects selected for The Films After Tomorrow, and the 12 films in the Pardi di domani section.
Swiss cinema is also featured in the other section of Locarno 2020. A Journey in the Festival’s History will offer audiences the chance to rediscover filmmakers like Alain Tanner, Clemens Klopfenstein or Remo Legnazzi, or "distant" Swiss productions like Au nom du Christ, which was produced by Amka Films in 1993. There's also the closing night, with Collection Lockdown by Swiss Filmmakers and the Swiss production La France contre les Robots, the latest short film directed by the great French filmmaker Jean-Marie Straub. Is that it? The Secret Screenings section is unaccounted for, and maybe there will be a Swiss surprise for the Locarno audience amid the nine screenings that Artistic Director Lili Hinstin has programmed under the radar. This is the list of Swiss productions in the non-competitive sections of Locarno 2020.
If the Locarno 2020 audience will be able to embark on a journey through Swiss cinema, both past and present, we also owe it to the film industry, from the Cinémathèque Suisse to the distributors, from the festival community to the VOD platforms, which, this year more than ever, have chosen to stand by the Locarno Film Festival ti craft Locarno 2020 together. For the Future of (Swiss) Films.