Switzerland has a starry presence in this year's Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film (6-11 May 2025). Being the country in focus, it gives the sometimes unduly neglected Swiss animation a prominent space -and more arthouse and commercial successes of animation filmmakers (think of 'My Life as a Zucchini' by Claude Barras, or the animation and game trajectories of Michael Frei, or the always consistently distinctive work of Isabelle Favez.

Here are some highlights of this year's Swiss Focus programme, as well as a closer look at some Swiss animation projects pitched at the Animation Production Days, the festival's international pitching forum. Its creators talk to Zippy Frames.

Claude Barras in screening and exhibition

Claude Barras' 'My Life as a Zucchini' (2016) will be screened at the Open Air; his new animation feature 'Savages' will also be screened at the cinemas. In his masterclass, the Swiss animation director will provide his own inner look at puppet animation. An accompanying exhibition, showcasing the 'Savages' puppets and props will also be part of the festival programme.

Lucerne School of Design, Film and Art (HSLU)

The last 10 years of the famous school will be presented in the  “Best of Animation Lucerne” programme -gems like 'Ruben Leaves' (Frederic Siegel), 'Tapir Memories' (Pedro Nel Cabrera Vanegas) and 'Pipes' (Jessica Meyer, Kilian Feusi, Sujanth Ravichandran) feature.

Ruben Leaves

Emergent and acclaimed Swiss animation directors present

At the festival's "In Persona",  animation filmmaker Maja Gehrig (Average Happiness) will discuss her artistic output -8 short animation films will be screened. The programme "Swiss Women Animation" features 11 animation shorts from Swiss women animation filmmakers; an equal number of films screens in the 'Future Minds - Talents to Watch programme'.

Swiss Animation Projects in APD

4 Swiss animation projects have been pitched to the international Animation Production Days pitching forum.  We check on the feature animation documentary project, 'Amada Libertad' (Roundabout Film) by Celina Escher; Claude Barras (along with co-director  Diane Agatha) prepare the 'Caca Boudin' animation series for school audiences. Swiss production Asako film (prod. Anja Kofmel, Frances McStea) is pitching the 20-minute, 2D digital cutout/mixed media animadoc 'Papierschloss' (Paper Castle) by Luise Hüsler. And the 2D, feature animation doc project 'Acrobat Bodies' by Elodie Dermange (read her previous interview at Zippy Frames), produced by Nicolas Burlet (Nadasdy Film), brings a more nuanced layer to the world of circus.

'Papierschloss'

Paola (14), Jordan (15), and Patrick (19) navigate their challenging everyday lives with energy, wit, and sarcasm. As undocumented young people living in Switzerland, they have learned which places are off-limits to them, when a white lie is required, and how to get by with little money.

While an approved hardship application suddenly improves Paola's life, a tragic bike accident shatters Patrick's hopes and reminds him that, despite his best efforts, he doesn’t officially exist. The paralyzing situation threatens to break the usually optimistic Jordan - Project synopsis

Papierschloss concept still

The project came from a real interview taken by the film's director, Luise Hüsler, with a young undocumented girl (but born in Switzerland, the child of a woman without official papers). "I find it shocking that such young people are exposed to so much pressure and have to be constantly vigilant and conscious of their behavior so as not to attract the attention of the police– at an age that is all about pushing boundaries and defining your own identity", Luise Hüsler tells Zippy Frames.

The animation doc project emerged from this impetus, a combination of interest and a lack of knowledge about the topic (children born in Switzerland but without legal rights to be there).

'Acrobat Bodies'

The 70-minute feature animation by Elodie Dermange (Armat) uses gouache and watercolors in a 2D animated painting to tell the story of Pimprenelle, a circus artist.

While Pimprenelle goes on stage for the first time, the mockery of her appearance plunges her into deep self-doubt. As she moves away from the spotlight, enigmatic artists invite her to discover their inner worlds, magical big tops where their flaws become wonders. Through these intense, poetic encounters, Pimprenelle glimpses a path to reconciling her broken reflection with her inner light. When the time comes for the final show, an unexpected transformation takes place, and the audience discovers a transformed Pimprenelle.

Acrobat Bodies concept still

The idea came from the director's experience attending and enacting a circus performance. Her initial perception as an outsider of "poetic, meaningful acts" was modified after she put herself to the test (mostly in the aerial hoop task). " I began training, and it was a revelation—awakening my body beyond the sedentary life of a visual artist. The journey was both exhilarating and grueling: moments of joy and discovery mixed with pain, bruises, and self-doubt". Marrying the world of animation with the vibrant world of the circus, Dermange wants this project to relate to "the intricate relationship we have with our bodies". And she needs via her Pimprenelle character, a novice aerialist in her thirties, to explore self expression, insecurities, and the courage to confront societal norms -ultimately the film being "a celebration of the human body’s emotional depth".

Swiss Focus Trailer

Trailer created by Océane Klingler 

 
The programme was created in partnership with SWISS FILMS, the professional association GSFA, the Consulate General of Switzerland in Stuttgart, Valais Film Commission, Zürcher Filmstiftung, Lucerne School of Design, Film and Art (HSLU) and Cinéforom. Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film takes place between 6 and 11 May 2025.

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