Culture, as reflected in the films of a country, by and large gives an identity to that country. Though Swiss film industry is small and majorly supported by the state, but, there are certain Swiss movies which have dazzled the movie buffs. All French, Italian and German movies come under Swiss cinema.
Directors, like Alain tanner, Jean Luc Godard, Rolf Lyssy, to name a few; put Swiss films on the cinematographic map. Lyssy's 'Die Schweizermacher' (The Swissmakers) has been one the most successful Swiss films, released in 1978. This movie is a satirical comedy, dealing with the difficulties faced by the foreigners who want to become Swiss citizens.
On the other hand, Jean Luc Godard's Prenom Carmen (1983), Je Vous Salue Marie 1985), Detective (1985), Nouvelle Vague (1990), JLG by JLG (1995), For Ever Mozart (1996), Eloge De L'amour (2001), and, Film Socialism (2010) made him a notable French director. The Last Chance, The Invitation, The Boat Is Full, The Death of Mario Ricci, Dangerous Moves, Journey of Hope are some famous films.
Jean Paul Cardinaux, Richard Dembo, Elena Hazanov, Claude Goretta, Richard Linklater, Xavier Koller, and many others are other famous Swiss directors. August Kern and Lazar Wechsler are the big producers of Swiss film industry. Ursula Andress, Anne Marie Blanc, Gian Maria Volonte, to name only a few; are the big actors of Swiss cinema.
Although the Swiss Confederation has many prestigious movies to its name, but, the countryside and mountains are the magnets that attract directors and producers from around the globe to shot their film in Switzerland. The Swiss Film Commission is the one responsible to handle such enormous number of film projects coming to Confederation Suisse. They also help in co-producing the films with Switzerland, thus, promoting their own cinema.
Many Hollywood movies have been shot in Switzerland. Some of the major ones include- Bon Appetit, The Bourne Identity (1988), Chaplin, The Golden Compass, Golden Eye, Golden Finger, Return of the Pink Panther, Star Wars Episode 3, Rollerball, The Informant, Phenomena, Three colours: Red, Women In Love. Films set in Switzerland include- Angels & Demons, The Bourne Identity (2002), Girls' Dormitory, Heidi, Mad About Music, Thunderbird 6, etc.
Even many of the Bollywood movies have been shot in the Swiss Confederation. Some of them are; Bachna Ae Haseeno, Ziddi, Ajnabee, Company, Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, Dil Toh Pagal Hai, Hulchul, Kalyug, and Don 2. Many of the Indian directors and producers are so spellbound by Switzerland, that they consider it to be an ideal location for their film sets. Yash Chopra has shot many of his films in Switzerland.
Locarno International Film Festival, the 62 year old event is an asset of the Swiss Film Industry. Every august around 160,000 cinema goers, 1000 journalists, and, 3000 industry professionals converge in the town of Locarno, right in the heart of Europe.
Be it Swiss film industry or Switzerland as a location for Hollywood and Indian movies; it can be analysed that both are key contributors to the world of movies at large.
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