Miscellaneous The Solothurn Film Festival audience appreciates documentaries
Documentary films are promoted in Switzerland and are suitable for profound questions. Niccolò Castelli, artistic director of the Solothurn Film Festival, explains why Switzerland is a land of documentary films.
15.01.2025, 10:45
SDA
61 documentaries and just 28 feature films can be seen in the Panorama feature-length film program at this year's Solothurn Film Festival. Is this focus a deliberate decision by the selection committee from the 427 films submitted? It is a reflection of the films submitted, as artistic director Niccolò Castelli told the Keystone-SDA news agency. There is no deliberate focus in the selection. As a rule, documentaries predominate among the submissions.
However, the coronavirus pandemic of all things has given a boost to feature films, says Castelli. "Hardly any films could be made during Covid. Filmmakers had time to write scripts. After the pandemic, these were then made into films." This was evident last year in Solothurn, when there were more feature films in the program.
Fewer feature films because of series
But why are more documentaries made in Switzerland on average than feature films? Castelli names several possible factors. The most obvious one is that documentaries usually have a smaller budget and a smaller crew. "A documentary can be made with half a million."
"A lot has also changed technically in the last 15 years. With a good digital camera, which is not that expensive, you can make a visually strong documentary," he says. In addition, a lot of archive material has been digitized in recent years and access to historical material has become easier for filmmakers.
Documentary films are also taken seriously in Switzerland in terms of funding, emphasizes Castelli. In Italy, for example, it is hardly possible to receive funding for them. There, documentaries are almost exclusively produced for television.
Niccolò Castelli sees another reason for the decline in feature film production in the fact that many directors are increasingly making series. "The fictional sector is no longer limited to feature-length films; series production is booming."
Undermining expectations
The density of documentary films is more of a plus point for Solothurn, says Castelli. This is because the festival audience is extremely receptive to this genre. "Perhaps documentaries work so well in Switzerland because they are particularly suitable for dealing with social, philosophical and political issues. Our audience is interested in these topics."
When programming, however, he also tries to subvert expectations, despite their certain value. "For example, by programming a feature film by a young female director in a prominent position and thus hopefully also reaching the classic documentary film audience," says Castelli.
Swiss documentaries find their audience not only at the Film Days, but also in cinemas. For example, "Wisdom of Happiness" about the Dalai Lama has so far attracted over 50,000 admissions across Switzerland. "E.1027 - Eileen Gray and the House by the Sea" was seen by around 10,000 viewers on its launch weekend. "These successes are amazing, as documentaries are more difficult to market."
Documentaries also often win awards in Solothurn. Last year, for example, "Die Anhörung" won the "Prix de Soleure" and "Echte Schweizer" the "Prix du Public". This year, four documentaries are vying for the main prize and five are nominated for the Audience Award. Swiss documentary films are also repeatedly successful at international festivals. For example, "Immortals" by Maja Tschumi at the renowned Danish documentary film festival CPH:DOX, or "Naima" by Anna Thommen at DOK Leipzig.
"We are living through a change of era"
After three years of visioning films for the Solothurn Film Festival: What is Castelli's balance sheet? It's amazing that a theme usually emerges that runs like a red thread through the films, he says. "We are currently experiencing a change of era. Many filmmakers are no longer simply accepting the past. They are grappling with the issues of legacy and heritage." For example, Simon Baumann in "We Heirs", but also Zijad Ibrahimovic in "Il ragazzo della Drina", in which the director returns to his homeland 30 years after the Srebrenica massacre and confronts the trauma of his flight.
And what makes a good documentary film for Niccolò Castelli, who is also a director himself? "The film has to inspire me not only in terms of content, but also visually; it has to have a cinematic awareness. I want to see new perspectives on a story, shadows, corners and edges. I like it when the audience leaves the movie theater with interesting questions in their heads. "*
*This text by Sarah Sartorius, Keystone-SDA, was realized with the help of the Gottlieb and Hans Vogt Foundation.
