Although Michael Koch’s A Piece of Sky [+lire aussi :
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interview : Michael Koch
fiche film], which was presented in a world premiere at the 2022 Berlinale, and Stuntwomen [+lire aussi :
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interview : Ursula Meier
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The drama A Piece of Sky, shot in the majestic setting of the Swiss Alps using supporting actors, has already walked a rather enviable road, nabbing a Special Mention in the 2022 Berlinale’s international competition, a Special Jury Award at the International Thessaloniki Film Festival, and representing Switzerland in the 2022 Oscar race, among other boasts. As such, despite the competition being fierce (El agua [+lire aussi :
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interview : Elena Lopez Riera
fiche film] by Elena López Riera was also in the running, alongside Carmen Jaquier’s Thunder [+lire aussi :
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interview : Carmen Jaquier
fiche film], which triumphed in the categories of Best Score and Best Sound, Ursula Meier’s afore-mentioned movie The Line, and Cyril Schäublin’s Unrest [+lire aussi :
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interview : Cyril Schäublin
fiche film], which bagged Best Cinematography), it came as no surprise when the Academy named Koch’s work Best Fiction Film 2023.

What was surprising, however, was the decision to crown a first film Best Documentary. Other works battling it out for the title included the 2022 Visions du Réel champion Like An Island [+lire aussi :
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interview : Tizian Büchi
fiche film], by Tizian Büchi, Loving Highsmith [+lire aussi :
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fiche film] by Eva Vitija, which opened the 2022 Solothurn Film Festival, Girl Gang [+lire aussi :
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interview : Susanne Regina Meures
fiche film] by Susanne Regina Meures, which had also been selected for major festivals including Amsterdam’s IDFA, Tallin’s PÖFF Black Nights Film Festival and Florence’s Festival dei Popoli, and (Im)mortels [+lire aussi :
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fiche film] by Lila Ribi, which walked away with the Best Editing trophy.

The Record, Jonathan Laskar’s intriguing film which tells the story of a wine-maker with magical powers, earned itself the accolade of Best Animated Film, having also screened in a number of international festivals, where it won, among other awards, Best Film in Annecy 2022 and the New Swiss Talent Prize at Fantoche. For its part, the documentary Becoming a Black Woman [+lire aussi :
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fiche film] by the Swiss-Congolese journalist Rachel M’Bon and the director of Mexican descent Julia Fanjul - which lends a voice to the many women who lay claim to Swiss, black identity - bagged the title of Best Short Film. Last but not least, Manfred Liechti, the protagonist of Laurent Wyss’ Peter K. – Alone Against the State, won himself the award for Best Actor, while the documentary Ours (crowned Best Film in the 2022 Sparks II line-up at the Internationale Kurzfilmtage di Winterthur) by Morgane Frund (who studied at HSLU) was named Best Graduate Film.

The two acting coaches Barbara Fischer and Giles Foreman, who have worked on upwards of 30 films and 5 TV series, were the winners of the Academy’s Special Prize, while heavyweight producer Ruth Waldburger won the Honorary Award for lifetime achievement. The owner of Zurich-based firm Vega Films since 1988, Waldburger has worked with famous names along the lines of Jean-Luc Godard - producing 11 of his films - Alain Tanner, Alain Resnais, Béla Tarr, Noémie Lvovsky and Barbet Schroeder. More recently, Waldburger has been responsible for international hits such as Sister [+lire aussi :
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interview : Ursula Meier
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interview : Stéphanie Chuat et Véroniq…
fiche film] by Stéphanie Chuat and Véronique Reymond.

The winners of the 2023 Swiss Film Prize are as follows:

Best Film
A Piece of Sky [+lire aussi :
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interview : Michael Koch
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Best Documentary
Stuntwomen [+lire aussi :
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fiche film] - Elena Avdija (Switzerland/France)

Best Short Film
Becoming A Black Woman [+lire aussi :
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fiche film]- Juliana Fanjul and Rachel M’Bon

Best Animated Film
The Record - Jonathan Laskar

Best Screenplay
Stéphanie Blanchoud, Ursula Meier and Antoine Jaccoud – The Line [+lire aussi :
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interview : Ursula Meier
fiche film] (Switzerland/France/Belgium)

Best Actress
Stéphanie Blanchoud – The Line

Best Actor
Manfred Liechti - Peter K. – Alone Against the State

Best Supporting Performance
Elli Spagnolo – The Line

Best Score
Nicolas Rabaeus - Thunder [+lire aussi :
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interview : Carmen Jaquier
fiche film]

Best Cinematography
Silvan Hillman - Unrest [+lire aussi :
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interview : Cyril Schäublin
fiche film]

Best Editing
Karine Sudan – (Im)mortels [+lire aussi :
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fiche film]

Best Sound
Carlos Ibañez-Diaz, Denis Séchaud - Thunder

Best Graduate Film
Ours - Morgane Frund

Academy’s Special Prize
Barbara Fischer, acting coach
Giles Foreman, acting coach

Honorary Award
Ruth Waldburger for her career as a producer