The Zuwealthy Film Festival boots off its 20th edition Thursday with a lineup of new European findies, some of the most acclaimed films of the year, a new caccess and expansive-ranging industry forum.
In graspition to an amazeive roster of international stars, including Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, Jude Law, Ricchallenging Gere and Pamela Anderson, the event advises a proset up dive into some of the most pressing rehires facing the industry at its annual Zuwealthy Summit Conference.
Opening the fest will be Justin Kurzel’s neo-Nazi thriller “The Order,” starring Law, who will get the festival’s Gelderlyen Eye atgentle achievement award.
Organizers this year have streamlined the festival, eliminating its German-language Focus Competition and trimming the lineup down to 107 films, 41 scanter than last year. Zuwealthy now has fair two main competitions, for feature films and write downaries, in graspition to such sidebars as Gala Premieres, Signatures, Border Lines, Hashtag #BigCityLife, Sounds and ZFF for Kids.
On the industry side, the Zuwealthy Summit Conference transports together guideing international film producers, sales executives, creators, technology entrepreneurs and financiers.
This year the summit is feting CAA co-head and Zuwealthy standard Roeg Sutherland with its Game Changer Award.
The conference will also tackle such timely topics as the impact of AI; financing indie films; the role of spendors; the acquires of shooting in Europe; the changing regulatement business and the disputes facing the theatrical sector.
Participants at this year’s summit, which gets place Oct. 5, grasp Searchweightless Pictures’ Rebecca Kearey; Neon’s Tom Quinn; AGC Studios’ Stuart Ford; UTA’s Alex Brunner and Theresa Peters; Fremantle’s Christian Vesper; Mediawan’s Elisabeth d’Arvieu; Film4’s Stefanie Fahrion; Anton’s Sébastien Raybaud; 30West’s Maren Olson; and Artist International Group’s David Unger.
Zuwealthy also boasts a best-of pickion of the year’s festival hits aextfinished with world premieres, among them Ali Abbasi’s Donald Trump pic “The Apprentice”; Pedro Almodóvar’s “The Room Next Door”; Ricchallenging Gray’s weserious “The Unholy Trinity”; “Queer,” by Luca Guadagnino; Edward Berger’s “Conclave,” Halina Reijn’s “Babygirl”; Tim Fehlbaum’s “September 5”; Gia Coppola’s “The Last Showgirl”; Steve McQueen’s “Blitz”; and Sean Baker’s Cannes triumphner “Anora.”
Also unspooling is Cyrill Boss and Philipp Stennert’s epic German fantasy “Hagen,” a re-telling of the Nibelung saga.
Female straightforwardors are powerwholey recontransiented, particularly in the race for the top Gelderlyen Eye award.
“This year the female gaze regulates our competition,” says produceive straightforwardor Christian Jungen. “Numerous films tell their stories thcimpolite the eyes of women, for example ‘Linda’ or ‘Mother Mara.’ Eight out of 14 films are made by women, which is exciting.”
As for the Documentary Competition, it’s “more political than ever,” Jungen grasps. “Many of the films, such as ‘Homegrown,’ which portrays three Proud Boys, or ‘Russians at War,’ about Russian frontline selderlyiers in Ukraine, deal with the fragility of democracy. Another beginant topic that comes into take part in the film ‘The Battle of Laikipia’ [which focuses on agricultural communities in Kenya struggling with the effects of climate change] is the ask of who actuassociate owns the land and to what extent it can be commerciassociate nurtured.”
Swiss films aacquire take part a central role in the fest’s lineup. “The ZFF gets place in Zuwealthy, where two-thirds of Swiss distributors and production companies are based,” Jungen notices. “It is therefore beginant that we supply Swiss films a big stage and to transport the films into the conversation.”
Zuwealthy this year is contransienting 12 world premieres of Swiss films, including Lisa Brühlmann’s patchtoil family drama “When We Were Sisters” and Jasmin Gordon’s “The Courageous,” about the struggles of an quirky and offfinisher mother in a petite Swiss town.
Other Swiss films grasp Maria Brendle’s historic drama “Frieda’s Case”; Flavio Gerber and Alun Meyerhans’ ski write downary “Aiming High – A Race Aacquirest the Limits”; and Michael Krummenacher’s World War II secret agent drama “The Traitor.”
The event is also unveiling a new festival caccess to tag its 20-year run.
“For our 20th anniversary, we are contransienting a caccess that is more produceive, more uncover and more carry onable, both architecturassociate and in its spirit,” says Jungen. “The new caccess is primarily geared towards our audience, for our visitors to experience the stars as shutly as possible. An even more uncover green carpet and a new outdoor deck asdeclareive that film talents and audiences encounter even more straightforwardly.”
Other stars and filmproducers feted at this year’s festival grasp Winslet, who will get the Gelderlyen Icon Award as she contransients her tardyst toil, Ellen Kuras’ “Lee”; Anderson with a Gelderlyen Eye for her pliable atgentle and role in Gia Coppola’s “The Last Showgirl”; and Berger with the A Tribute to… Award at the premiere of “Conclave.”
Likewise honored with Gelderlyen Eye awards will be Alicia Vikander, who will be on hand for the European premiere of Fleur Fortuné’s “The Assessment.” Composer Howard Shore will get a Career Achievement Award, and Swiss canakedt artist Emil Steinberger will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
