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Die Serie „Davos 1917“ wurde für den Swiss Series Storytelling Award nominiert. Ingesamt gehen zwölf Serien ins Rennen. Die Auszeichnung wird zum ersten Mal im Rahmen des Geneva International Film Festival vergeben. Schweizer Uraufführung feiert „Winter Palace“ von Pierre Monnard, der ersten Zusammenarbeit von Rts und Netflix.

„Davos 1917“ (Credit: Srf/Ard Degeto/Amalia Film/Contrast Film/Letterbox Filmproduktion/Pascal Mora)

Die High-End-Serie „Davos 1917“ wurde für den Swiss Series Storytelling Award nominiert. Der Preis ist neu und wird erstmals beim 30. Geneva International Film Festival verliehen. Das Festival läuft vom 1. bis 11. November. Die Preisverleihung findet am 8. November statt. Der Swiss Series Storytelling Award würdigt die kreative Gestaltung einer Serienwelt in einem Drehbuch. Somit gehen für „Davos 1917“ die Autoren Adrien Illien (Headautor), Thomas Hess sowie Michael Sauter ins Rennen um diesen Preis. Der Award ist mit 20.000 Schweizer Franken dotiert, gestiftet von den Kulturfonds Ssa und Suissimage. Die Auszeichnung wird von einer internationalen Jury vergeben,...

Die in der Schweiz und Deutschland erfolgreich im Fernsehen ausgestrahlte Historienserie „Davos 1917“ startet am kommenden Montag bei Netflix.

Dominique Devenport in „Davos 1917“ (Credit: Srf/Ard Degeto/Amalia Film/Contrast Film/Letterbox Filmproduktion/Pascal Mora)

Ende 2023 avancierte die sechsteilige Serie „Davos 1917“ in der Schweiz mit einem durchschnittlichen Marktanteil von 33,5 Prozent zum erfolgreichsten fiktionalen Programm des Jahres für den ausstrahlenden Sender Srf, in Deutschland verzeichnete sie bei der Ausstrahlung im Ersten bis zu vier Mio. Zuschauer und wurde in der Mediathek mit 5,3 Mio. Abrufen trotz ihre Starts Mitte Dezember noch zu einer der Top-Ten-Serien des Jahres. Am kommenden Montag, 15. Juli, startet die historische Serie nun bei Netflix. Das gab die Letterbox Filmproduktion, die die Serie zusammen mit Contrast Film und Amalia Film produziert hat, heute bekannt.

In „Davos 1917“ spielt Dominique Devenport die Krankenschwester Johanna Gabathuler, die im Jahr 1917 nach einem Rotkreuz-Einsatz an der Westfront schwanger in den Schweizer Nobel-Kurort Davos zurückkehrt,...

Leading European distributor Global Screen, part of Telepool, has secured further international sales of high-end drama “Davos 1917” at MipTV. New acquisitions of the six-part thriller include Sbs Australia, Tvp in Poland and Big Tree Entertainment in India and the subcontinent.

“Davos 1917,” which launched at the end of last year on Srf in Switzerland and Ard in Germany, has already been bought by a strong lineup of premium international broadcasters and streamers across North America, Europe and Asia.

Inspired by real events that occurred in the early days of the European secret services, “Davos 1917” boasts a stellar cast headed by Dominique Devenport (“Sisi”), David Kross (“The Reader”), Jeanette Hain (“Never Look Away”), Max Herbrechter (“Rauhnächte”), Sunnyi Melles (“Triangle of Sadness”) and Stipe Erceg (“Vienna Blood”).

The show is set in 1917 as World War I is ravaging Europe. By contrast, Switzerland seems like an oasis of peace. But behind the scenes of neutral Switzerland,...

Leading European distributor Global Screen, part of Westbrook’s Telepool, has sold premium spy drama series “Davos 1917” to North America and to additional free-to-air broadcasters in Europe.

Global Series Network picked up the series for its innovative SVOD feed Walter Presents in North America. National broadcaster Rtp in Portugal has also acquired the series, as well as Filmin VOD services for Spain and Portugal.

These deals are in addition to recently announced sales to Mediaset for Italy, Mtva for Hungary and Orf for Austria. The six-part thriller launched in December on Srf in Switzerland and Ard in Germany.

Inspired by real events that occurred in the early days of the European secret services, “Davos 1917” has a stellar cast headed by Dominique Devenport (“Sisi”), David Kross (“The Reader”), Jeanette Hain (“Never Look Away”), Max Herbrechter (“Rauhnächte”), Sunnyi Melles (“Triangle of Sadness”) and Stipe Erceg (“Vienna Blood”).

In 1917, World War I is ravaging Europe.

Everyone lies in the World War I series “Davos 1917.” Mostly because they have to.

“You have war, you have the elite coming together in this one place. You have to watch your step and tread carefully. Everything could be a trap,” says Jan-Eric Mack, who directed alongside Christian Theede and Anca Miruna Lazarescu.

The show focuses on a young nurse Johanna who finds herself surrounded by spies in the Swiss resort town. Desperate to reunite with her illegitimate daughter, she discovers she has a talent for espionage, too.

“I think she always had these skills. She just couldn’t show them in the house she grew up in,” says lead actor Dominique Devenport, also known for “Sisi.”

“She has always been different. And then, suddenly, she gets an opportunity to develop talents she didn’t even know she had. That’s why it’s happening so quickly, in a way.

World War I spy drama “Davos 1917” was inspired by real stories, says head writer and creative producer Adrian Illien. As well as real women.

“There were all these Swiss nurses who would go abroad during the war. When you read their diaries, there is a sense of adventure. They could finally get away. I don’t think these female characters have been portrayed before. Until now.”

In the six-part show, unmarried nurse Johanna Gabathuler (“Sisi” star Dominique Devenport) gives birth to her daughter. When the child is taken away, Johanna finds herself stuck in the resort town of Davos. But soon, the German secret service comes knocking.

“Women actually held prominent positions there. With my co-writers [Julia Penner, Thomas Hess and Michael Sauter] we stumbled across one who was a handler of Mata Hari. We always talk about Mata Hari, but I found the spy behind her much more interesting,...

Swiss festival programmes 148 films for this year’s edition.

The Zurich Film Festival (Zff) has unveiled a line-up of 148 films for its 2023 edition which takes place from September 28 to October 8.

The festival’s Focus Competition – which showcases feature films and documentaries from Germany, Austria and Switzerland - has six world premieres. They include Swiss films The Driven One by Piet Baumgartner, a long-term study of students at the elite university Hsg St. Gallen, and road movie Return To Alexandria by Zurich-based Tamer Ruggli, which stars Nadine Labaki and Fanny Ardant.

Scroll down for Focus and Feature Film Competition line-up

Other...

The high-end drama has been showcased at pitching events from Berlin to Turin.

German sales outfit Global Screen has acquired international rights to historical high-end drama series Davos, starring Dominique Devenport and David Kross, now shooting in Switzerland and Germany.

Inspired by true events during the First World War, the espionage thriller centres on a young Swiss nurse working in a Swiss health resort where various spies are meeting to hatch a daring plan.

Devenport most recently starred as Elisabeth Empress of Austria, in Rtl ‘s series Sisi.

The series is a co-production between Switzerland’s Contrast Film and Germany’s Letterbox Filmproduktion,...

International feature film and commercial content group Iconoclast and Berlin-based StickUp Films have established a new joint venture to produce feature films and series for the domestic and international markets.

Represented by Creative Artists Agency (CAA), the new shingle, Iconoclast Films Germany, is aiming to produce a minimum of three film or series projects annually within a five-year ramp-up period.

The company is headed by Luis Singer and Dennis Schanz of StickUp Films – the creators and co-producers of Netflix’s award-winning series “Skylines” — as well as Iconoclast executive producer Swantje Rummel.

Iconoclast sees the new venture as part of its international content strategy and a logical extension of its brand. In addition to producing recent works by the likes of Gus Van Sant, Julian Schnabel (“At Eternity’s Gate”), Harmony Korine (“The Beach Bum”) and Romain Gavras (“The World Is Yours”) through its companies in the U.S. and France, Iconoclast...

Lisa Brühlmann’s debut film takes three prizes including Best Fiction Film

Blue My Mind, the debut film from Lisa Brühlmann, won three awards at the 21st Swiss Film Awards in Zurich tonight (March 23).

The film, a coming-of-age story imbued with elements of body horror, received best fiction film, best screenplay and best actress for Lena Wedler.

See below for the full list of winners

Brühlmann’s film world premiered in the New Directors section at the 2017 San Sebastian Film Festival, and won the Golden Eye and Critics’ Choice awards at Zurich Film Festival last year.

Best documentary was awarded...

Two American university film schools are represented on this year’s Oscar shortlist for Best Live Action Short Film, which have to win film festival awards to qualify. The Academy’s Short Films and Animation branch selected 10 live-action shorts (out of 165 qualified submissions) to contend for Oscar nominations. They will now vote for five nominees from the shortlist after attending January branch screenings in Los Angeles, London, New York and San Francisco.

The shorts are listed below in alphabetical order. No film will be deemed a frontrunner until I have seen it.

Contenders:

“DeKalb Elementary,” Reed Van Dyk, director (UCLA)

“The Eleven O’Clock,” Derin Seale, director (Finch)

“Facing Mecca,” Jan-Eric Mack, director, and Joël Jent, producer (Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion)

“Icebox,” Daniel Sawka, director, and Camille Cornuel, producer (Iceboxthefilmco)

“Lost Face,” Sean Meehan, director, and Sam McGarry, producer (Soma Films)

“My Nephew Emmett,” Kevin Wilson, Jr., director (New York University)

“Rise of a Star,...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences unveiled the 10 films that made the short list for Best Live Action Short on Monday. The films were selected out of a field of 165 short films submitted for consideration, the highest in Academy history. Among those films are three entries that won Student Academy Awards earlier this year: Jan-Eric Mack’s “Facing Mecca,” Katja Benrath’s “Watu Wote,” and Kevin Wilson Jr.’s “My Nephew Emmett.” The 10 films will now be viewed by the Academy’s Short Films and Feature Animation Branch, with screenings to be held in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco next.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Short Films and Animation branch has selected its shortlist of 10 live-action short films (out of 165 qualified submissions) to contend for five Oscar nominations.

American film schools UCLA and Nyu both landed films on the list. “DeKalb University,” directed by UCLA’s Reed Van Dyk, premiered at the SXSW Film Festival and was nominated for the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences College Television Awards. “My Nephew Emmett,” from Nyu’s Kevin Wilson Jr., received the gold medal for narrative at the 2017 Student Academy Awards.

The 10 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production companies:

“DeKalb Elementary,” Reed Van Dyk, director (UCLA)

“The Eleven O’Clock,” Derin Seale, director (Finch)

“Facing Mecca,” Jan-Eric Mack, director, and Joël Jent, producer (Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion)

“Icebox,” Daniel Sawka, director, and Camille Cornuel, producer (Iceboxthefilmco)

“Lost Face,” Sean Meehan, director, and Sam McGarry,...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Short Films and Animation branch has selected its shortlist of 10 live-action short films (out of 165 qualified submissions) to contend for five Oscar nominations.

American film schools UCLA and Nyu both landed films on the list. “DeKalb University,” directed by UCLA’s Reed Van Dyk, premiered at the SXSW Film Festival and was nominated for the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences College Television Awards. “My Nephew Emmett,” from Nyu’s Kevin Wilson Jr., received the gold medal for narrative at the 2017 Student Academy Awards.

The 10 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production companies:

“DeKalb Elementary,” Reed Van Dyk, director (UCLA)

“The Eleven O’Clock,” Derin Seale, director (Finch)

“Facing Mecca,” Jan-Eric Mack, director, and Joël Jent, producer (Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion)

“Icebox,” Daniel Sawka, director, and Camille Cornuel, producer (Iceboxthefilmco)

“Lost Face,” Sean Meehan, director, and Sam McGarry,...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the 44th Student Academy Award winners today. The 17 winners were selected from 1,587 films, which came from 356 different international colleges and universities — 267 domestic, 89 international — and were voted on by Academy members.

There’s a long history of Student Academy Award winners going on to have successful filmmaking careers, with previous winners including Patricia Cardoso, Pete Docter, Cary Fukunaga, John Lasseter, Spike Lee, Trey Parker, and Robert Zemeckis.

Also of note, the 17 winners are automatically Oscar eligible in the Best Short Film categories: Animation, Documentary, and Live Action. Past student award winners have gone on the receive 57 Oscar nominations and won 11 times.

The 44th Student Academy Awards ceremony will held at the The Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills on October 12th. Tickets to the ceremony are free and available to the public at the Academy’s website. A complete list of the winners is below.

As the fall festivals loom, countries around the world are lining up their potential foreign-language entries. Switzerland has already submitted women’s suffrage dramedy “The Divine Order” by Petra Volpe (“Heidi”) to vie for an Oscar at the 90th Academy Awards. Last years 85 countries submitted Oscar-qualifying films.

Set in the ’70s, the film about a Swiss young wife and mother who fights the patriarchy and starts campaigning for women’s suffrage and sexual liberation won the 2017 Swiss Film Award for Best Script, Best Actress (Marie Leuenberger), and Best Supporting Actress (Rachel Braunschweig). The feature went on to win three awards at Tribeca, including the International Narrative Film Audience, Nora Ephron Prize for writer-director Volpe, and Best Actress awards. This week, the film also garnered two more two prizes at Michael Moore’s Traverse City Film Festival.

Read More2018 Oscar Predictions: Best Foreign Language Film

TrustNordisk from Denmark has world rights to the “The Divine Order,...

As the fall festivals loom, countries around the world are lining up their potential foreign-language entries. Switzerland has already submitted women’s suffrage dramedy “The Divine Order” by Petra Volpe (“Heidi”) to vie for an Oscar at the 90th Academy Awards. Last years 85 countries submitted Oscar-qualifying films.

Set in the ’70s, the film about a Swiss young wife and mother who fights the patriarchy and starts campaigning for women’s suffrage and sexual liberation won the 2017 Swiss Film Award for Best Script, Best Actress (Marie Leuenberger), and Best Supporting Actress (Rachel Braunschweig). The feature went on to win three awards at Tribeca, including the International Narrative Film Audience, Nora Ephron Prize for writer-director Volpe, and Best Actress awards. This week, the film also garnered two more two prizes at Michael Moore’s Traverse City Film Festival.

Read More2018 Oscar Predictions: Best Foreign Language Film

TrustNordisk from Denmark has world rights to the “The Divine Order,...

This year, some 500 filmmakers from 60 countries braved record temperatures to attend the 23rd annual Palm Springs International ShortFest (June 20-26), the largest short film festival and only short film market in North America. Psisf hosted 338 fiction and documentary shorts, 46 World Premieres, 12 International Premieres, 42 North American Premieres and 16 U.S. Premieres.

And more than 4,200 of the festival submissions were available in the Film Market for industry attendees to view online. Check out the complete lineup here.

Designated by AMPAS, BAFTA, and Bifa as an award-qualifying festival, and accredited by the International Short Film Conference, the festival gives its competition filmmakers a chance to secure $20,000 in cash prizes in 21 categories. The Panavision Best North American Short Award winner gets the use of a camera package valued at $60,000. Only the first-place winners in five categories are eligible to vie for an Academy Award nomination. Over 22 years, the Festival has presented 101 films that have...

This year, some 500 filmmakers from 60 countries braved record temperatures to attend the 23rd annual Palm Springs International ShortFest (June 20-26), the largest short film festival and only short film market in North America. Psisf hosted 338 fiction and documentary shorts, 46 World Premieres, 12 International Premieres, 42 North American Premieres and 16 U.S. Premieres.

And more than 4,200 of the festival submissions were available in the Film Market for industry attendees to view online. Check out the complete lineup here.

Designated by AMPAS, BAFTA, and Bifa as an award-qualifying festival, and accredited by the International Short Film Conference, the festival gives its competition filmmakers a chance to secure $20,000 in cash prizes in 21 categories. The Panavision Best North American Short Award winner gets the use of a camera package valued at $60,000. Only the first-place winners in five categories are eligible to vie for an Academy Award nomination. Over 22 years, the Festival has presented 101 films that have...

California festival runs through June 26.

Jan-Eric Mack’s Facing Mecca from Switzerland was named best of fest as the Palm Springs International Shortfest awards were handed out on Sunday (25).

The film (pictured) received a $5,000 cash prize courtesy of the Greater Palm Springs Convention & Visitors Bureau and may be eligible for Oscar consideration.

The grand jury award went to The Head Vanishes (France-Canada) by Franck Dion Jacqueline, and the Panavision Best North American Short award and the use of a camera package valued at $60,000 courtesy of Panavision was presented to Reed Van Dyk’s Dekalb Elementary (USA).

In the non-student awards, whose winners may be eligible for Oscar consideration, The Head Vanishes took the animated award, while best documentary short was presented to Edith Eddie (USA) by Laura Checkoway.

Retouch (Iran) by Kaveh Mazaheri prevailed in the best live action short over 15 minutes category, and the best live action short of 15 minutes and under award went to [link...