18/11/2011

Two minds, one philosophy: "Making and producing films with a powerful content in a European context". It is around this idea they have of cinema that Dan Wechsler (pictured) and Laurent Nègre set up Bord Cadre films in Geneva in 2004. With a degree in audiovisual management and film production, Dan Wechsler takes care of the financial, contractual and legal aspects of production. Laurent Nègre, for his part, puts his qualities as filmmaker and screenwriter to use to validate projects.

Their goal? To develop Swiss films capable of touching an international audience. Extending their network beyond the helvetic borders is now essential for these two young Swiss men. Selected to the Producers on the Move at the 2011 Cannes Festival, Dan Wechsler states: "If you don’t open up, it’s impossible to evolve".

It is in 2010, therefore, or five years after having produced a first feature film together by Laurent Nègre Fragile [+see also:
trailer
film profile], that the duo put their philosophy into practice and embarked on their first co-production. A complex project involving Romania, France, Germany and Switzerland, Cristi Puiu’s Aurora [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Clara Voda
film profile] won them several festival nominations as well as the Gil Parrondo Award for best artistic direction at the Gijón International Fim Festival in 2010.

Bord Cadre seemed to have taken off. However, Dan Wechsler and Laurent Nègre will have to be very demanding and make choices between the projects presented to them. In Switzerland, production grants allowed them, at best, to produce one film a year. It is in this context that they chose to pursue the adventure with Opération Casablanca, made by Laurent Nègre himself and co-produced by France and Canada. Without the support of these two countries, this feature wouldn’t have seen the light of day or be presented at various festivals. Not forgetting that, as Dan Wechsler reminds us, «cinema is content, but also technical human and financial resources».

Their latest co-production, Los Pasos dobles [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Catlonia’s Isaki Lacuesta, won the San Sébastian Festival Golden Shell. This collaboration with Spain represented an «amazing experience» for this enthusiastic duo who are already involved in two other projects, the adaptation of the novel «Le noir est une couleur» by Grisélidis Réal and of «Lointainville» by Sylvie Desrosiers. In the hope, of course, that these works will circulate in Europe – as well as beyond it.