06/04/2005

Since the 1st of April, the Swiss Federal Cultural Office (OFC) has a new director, Jean-Frédéric Jauslin, who was finally promoted after fifteen years as the director of the National Library. The 50-year-old doctor in computer sciences replaces David Streiff, former director of the Locarno Film Festival who spent 11 years trying to improve the position of culture in Switzerland.
When the latter left, on the 31st of March, Marc Wehrlin, head of the ‘Cinema’ section of the OFC, announced he too, after 10 years in this position, wished to move on ; on the 1st of August, he will become the vice-director of the OFC.

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Not that the Streiff-Wehrlin team cannot boast a series of important achievements —under them, the budget dedicated to cinema was raised from 12.3 to 22.5 million euros (12.5 of which are dedicated to production), a support system based on success and the Swiss cinema awards were created, reforms concerning the film support structures were implemented...— but the cuts which will affect the Swiss budget until 2008 have caused some tension. The future is uncertain, but the hope is that renewing the OFC staff will favour some kind of highly unlikely miracle regarding Switzerland’s financial support to cinema.

It must be said, however, that for lack of a proper Ministry of Culture in Switzerland, the director of the OFC and the head of the ‘Cinema’ section who works under him only have limited powers. It is Pascal Couchepin, the Federal Councellor, head of the federal Home office (DFI), who eventually makes all the decisions —as he does with social protection, health, education, and research... Since Pascal Couchepin became Head of the DFI in 2001, the lack of chemistry between him and David Streiff —between the man of action and he who described himself as the ‘keeper of our cultural garden’— was a well-known fact, and the situation rapidly got worse. Mr. Couchepin’s emphatic but uninformed criticisms in the newspapers during the Locarno Film Festival led to Streiff’s hasty dismissal. This summary measure was deemed too cavalier and outraged the cinema society.
After David Streiff, Jean-Frédéric Jauslin, known for his experience in management, probably has more chances to fulfil the minister’s expectations in this difficult time for the OFC, which suffers from the cuts in budget (about €2.5M less) although it is hoped that this will not have repercussions on the ‘Cinema’ section. What everybody wonders now is who will replace Marc Wehrlin at the head of this section. We will know the answer in a few weeks.

(Translated from French)