A presentation of films from Switzerland’s film schools, with live feedback and award show.
Swiss Film School Day:
Session IKurzfilmtage’s annual Swiss Film School Day is a showcase of Switzerland’s five major undergraduate degree programmes. Ecole cantonale d’art de Lausanne (ECAL), the Geneva University of Art and Design (HEAD), the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK), and the Lucerne School of Art and Design – Video and Animation, present a selection of their recent short films.
The jury of the Swiss Competition gives feedback to the students and awards the prize for the Best Swiss School Film (CHF 5000.–, donated by SRG SSR). The winner will be announced at 21:00 at Kraftfeld.
Admission to the Swiss Film School Day is free – a great opportunity to get a first glimpse of Kurzfilmtage!
Lucerne School of Art and Design – Video
With a focus on documentary film and video essay, the Video degree course at the Lucerne School of Art and Design is dedicated to two genres offering a wide stylistic range. Students are encouraged to be bold in their experiments and to find their own audiovisual language. The short films creatively address social issues, and the works are characterized by their authors’ individual voices. The programme offers the opportunity to rediscover the world and to develop personal visions, skills, and attitudes. Each individual student’s search for their signature style is a central concern, stemming from the belief that artistic processes cannot be standardized. Instead, what is of interest is each person’s and each generation’s subjective perspective.
hslu.ch/video
Lucerne School of Art and Design – Animation
In the BA in Animation programme at the Lucerne School of Art and Design, students learn to tell stories in short animated formats. They develop their individual cinematic language, and they have the option of specializing in classical animation, computer animation, stop motion, or hybrid forms. They complete the three-year course with a film produced individually or in groups.
hslu.ch/animation
Lausanne University of Art and Design (ECAL)
The film department at ECAL, which was founded by Yves Yersin, has been training filmmakers since 1989. Lionel Baier has been head of the programme since 2002. The three-year BA course offers students the opportunity to participate in workshops with filmmakers such as Ursula Meier, Noémie Lvovsky, or Jean-Stéphane Bron. The programme encourages students to develop their own visual universe in short documentaries, fictional shorts, and experimental films.
ecal.ch
Geneva University of Art and Design (HEAD)
The three-year BA in Cinema course offers a series of introductions, discoveries, and encounters. Students produce a number of films, ranging from shorts lasting just a few minutes to demanding productions that meet international distributors’ expectations. The practical workshops are developed in dialogue with theoretical classes on the history and aesthetics of cinema, and theoretical workshops on gender/queer studies or decolonial thinking. The Cinema Department aims to stake out the complex history of documentary and fictional film in order to encourage interplay and crossovers between these two traditional genres. Its understanding of cinema is that of a creative practice derived from personal experience, aiming to observe and question the world, and to tell stories that are imaginary yet true.
hesge.ch/head/
Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK)
The film programmes at ZHdK focus on practical training. The school’s BA and MA in Film are closely linked, forming a consecutive programme. The three-year BA course provides comprehensive training in all key areas of filmmaking. Offering fundamental know-how in screenwriting, editing, photography, production, and sound design, the programme enables graduates to embark on professional careers in filmmaking.
film.zhdk.ch / filmstudieren.ch
with the kind support of: