Qui fait quoi?

Codirectrices

Rachel Schmid
+41 21 312 68 40
E-mail

Nicole Schroeder
+41 21 566 26 17
E-mail

Rachel Schmid (*1964) a fait des études d'économie, de germanistique et de théâtre à Zurich, Berkeley et Paris et a suivi une formation post-grade en management culturel à Hambourg.

Elle a commencé sa carrière professionnelle en 1987 en tant que productrice de pièces de théâtre et de films. En 1999, elle a suivi une formation continue internationale pour devenir experte en script development. Dans cette fonction, elle a conseillé d'innombrables sociétés de production, fonds de soutien au cinéma, programmes de formation et festivals en Suisse et à l'étranger lors de la sélection de projets et pour le développement de scénarios.

De 2005 à 2019, elle a entre autres été directrice de MEDIA Desk Suisse puis directrice adjointe du cursus de master en cinéma à la ZHdK (Haute école d'art de Zurich) et a travaillé comme déléguée de l'Office fédéral de la culture auprès d'Eurimages et en tant que membre du comité de différents fonds (e.a. la Zürcher Filmstiftung et le Film Fund Luxembourg).

Elle s'engage pour la diversité dans la branche cinématographique et est membre de diverses commissions pour l'égalité entre femmes et hommes.

Nicole Schroeder (*1967) a étudié le droit puis elle s’est tournée vers la pédagogie de l’art, domaine dans lequel elle a obtenu un Master of Arts. Elle a commencé dans la branche cinématographique en tant qu’organisatrice de prix de courts métrages et programmatrice de cinéma en plein air. Elle a travaillé pendant neuf ans comme 1ère assistante réalisatrice sur des productions de films nationales et internationales puis pendant quatre ans comme productrice exécutive. De 2008 à 2018, elle a enseigné régulièrement au Département cinéma de la Haute école d’art de Zurich (ZHdK).

Elle a commencé à travailler en tant que responsable de domaine pour FOCAL en 2012 et a organisé dans cette fonction des manifestations sur les techniques du cinéma, le développement de projets, le transmédia, les médias digitaux ainsi que sur le genre, la diversité et l’innovation. En 2016, elle a fondé le domaine transdisciplinaire CrossFOCAL.

Elle est co-initiatrice de la première enquête sur la «La question du genre» dans le cinéma suisse et fondatrice du réseau SWAN (Swiss Women’s Audiovisual Network). Elle s’intéresse tout particulièrement au développement d’idées, à la mise en place de coopérations et de réseaux ainsi qu’aux moyens favorisant l’égalité des chances. Elle s’engage pour la relève et pour un dialogue au niveau national sur la narration audiovisuelle.

Anne Perrenoud
Tél. +41 21 312 68 17
info@focal.ch

Réception téléphonique et secrétariat courant. Secrétariat des domaines Production, Réalisation fiction, Distribution/Exploitation, Scénario et CrossFOCAL/Divers, des séminaires européens ainsi que des mesures spéciales – sauf Mentoring for Docs. Secrétariat du Conseil de Fondation et production du programme d’activités.

Cécile Verpoorten
Tél. +41 21 312 68 17
info@focal.ch

Réception téléphonique et secrétariat courant. Secrétariat des domaines Animation, Réalisation documentaire, Technique et Interprétation ainsi que du Mentoring for Docs. Production du rapport annuel.

Muriel Rieser
Tél. +41 21 312 68 17
info@focal.ch

Gestion des inscriptions, mise à jour de la base de données et suivi des débiteurs. Paiement des factures et autres tâches comptables selon les besoins.

Sandrine Oberli
Tél. +41 21 312 68 17
info@focal.ch

Gestion financière et comptabilité. Gestion financière FOCAL resource aux Pays-Bas et comptabilité des séminaires européens.

Traductions, administration
Katja Schudel
Tél. +41 21 312 68 17
info@focal.ch

Traductions/rédactions. Secrétariat du Comité, du Stage Pool et du domaine andragogique, suivi de l’évaluation des séminaires par les participant·e·s.

Lea Gerber
stage@focal.ch

Responsable Stage Pool
stagepool.focal.ch

Née en 1982 à Soleure. Elle a rejoint la branche cinématographique en 2004 après une formation de photographe. Depuis lors, elle a travaillé comme régisseuse sur 30 longs métrages, dont DER FREUND (2007), L’ENFANCE VOLÉE (2010) et EINE WEN IIG, DR DÄLLEBACH KARI (2011), et sur de nombreux films publicitaires. De 2015 à 2018, elle a été organisatrice de séminaires pour le domaine Technique de FOCAL.
Tout au long de sa carrière, elle a accompagné des stagiaires sur des tournages et elle s'engage aujourd'hui, au travers de STAGE POOL, pour une relève durable dans les métiers techniques.

Nicolas Monguzzi
Tél. +41 21 312 68 17
webmaster@focal.ch

Administration des sites web et graphisme.

Benjamin Veillon
webmaster@focal.ch

Administration des sites web et développement de la base de données.

Fred Guillaume
Director
Tél. +41 26 401 30 32
fred.guillaume@focal.ch

Fred Guillaume was born in Fribourg (Switzerland) in 1976. After obtaining a Baccalaureate in Literature in 1998, he turned to the animated film realm, producing a first film, jointly with his brother Samuel, in 1998: Le petit manchot qui voulait une glace [The little penguin who wanted an ice cream]. The two went on to fulfill several film orders, advertisements, scientific films and shorts for "Cinemagination", their own production company. From 2003 to 2007, they embarked on their first full-length feature film Max & Co (Switzerland, France, UK), which travelled to over 20 countries and won, most notably, the Audience Award at the Annecy Festival. In parallel with their movies, Fred Guillaume collaborated on several projects for shows and installations; he also invited public interest through a children's film club, La lanterne magique, setting up various workshops and lectures as well. He is highly interested in the latest technologies, for which he has developed several tools and joined various research projects in a narrative vein.

Jessica Hefti
Tél. +41 79 523 83 33
jessica.hefti@focal.ch

Jessica Hefti was born in Zurich in 1989. During her apprenticeship with a publishing house in Zurich, she worked as a freelance cultural journalist for several regional newspapers. Due to her interest in telling stories, she then studied Documentary Film at the ‘Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’ (Germany). At that point she came to realize that as much as she loved working on films, she enjoyed even more following through on other people's good ideas and lending support to filmmakers. She obtained a Master's in Arts Management from the University of Zurich for Applied Sciences in 2013. After five years as a freelance production manager and assistant director for film, event and communication projects, she is now working as a TV Producer for Zodiac Pictures in Zurich.

Anna Luif
Director
Tél. +41 79 373 91 19
anna@niece.ch

Anna Luif is of Hungarian descent. She was born in Zurich in 1972.
After passing the higher education entrance qualification in 1991, she visited India, where she worked in Mother Teresa's children's home.
In 1992 she worked as a trainee with filmmaker June Kovach.
She completed her film studies at the HGKZ (today called ZHdK), where she made several short films. She also worked as a trainee with the artist Pipilotti Rist and played in the women's band Rosebud.
In 1999 she wrote the screenplay for her short film SUMMERTIME. The short was completed in 2000 and won 20 international awards.
In 2003 her first feature LITTLE GIRL BLUE was released and has meanwhile been screened at more than 30 film festivals.
In 2010 her second feature MADLY IN LOVE was released.
Anna Luif is currently working on new film material.

Responsable du domaine Interprétation pour la Romandie / Collaboratrice au domaine Réalisation fiction pour la Romandie
Nicole Borgeat
Screenwriter, director and dramaturg
Tél. +41 76 615 67 46
nicole.borgeat@focal.ch

Born in 1966. After her film directing studies at INSAS (Brussels), she initially worked as a production assistant and as a first assistant.
In 2003, she wrote and directed Demain j’arrête, which received an award in Locarno and was nominated for the Swiss Film Award. She then co-wrote two TV comedies: Pas de Panique (2006), directed by Denis Rabaglia, and Sauvons les Apparences! (2008), which she directed herself. She is about to start shooting her first feature called Le vaste monde.
In the theatre she has worked together with Yan Duyvendak, Omar Ghayatt, Alexandra Bachzetsis and Guillaume Béguin. She co-authored the staging of several performances which toured for a long time in both France and Switzerland.

Edgar Hagen
Documentary filmmaker and author
Tél. +41 61 681 48 82
edgar.hagen@focal.ch
edgarhagen.com

Born in Basel in 1958. He studied philosophy and German philology at the University of Basel and at the Free University of Berlin. In 1987 he obtained a Master of Arts from the Free University of Berlin. He then worked as a journalist and dramatic advisor. He has been an independent documentary filmmaker and author since 1989. He made the cinema documentaries Zeit der Titanen (2001), Someone Beside You (2007) and Journey to the Safest Place on Earth (2013). Since 2000, various teaching activities in the field of cinema and documentary narration. He has been a member of the Board of the Swiss Filmmakers Association (ARF/FDS) since 2010.

Vanja Baumberger
Tél. +41 79 921 11 50
vanja.baumberger@focal.ch

Born in Geneva in 1962. After completing her studies in the film department of the École Supérieure d'Art Visuel (currently: HEAD) [graduate school] film, she continued mainly in the production field. She participated in the Sputnik art-house movie theater's collective build-up and programming. She also coordinated and managed the Festival Black Movie '91 tour; was a location manager trainee on a film by Claude Goretta and on one by Moshé Mizrahi. She worked as a production assistant for Alhena Films (Roi Blanc, Dame Rouge by Sergei Bodrov), for Apsara Productions (Stairs by Peter Greenaway),and New Morning Productions (HD recordings of the 1994 jazz concerts). Further still, she was Production Director for a short-film series for the M6 TV channel, and for La Rencontre by the Swiss film director Irène Lichtenstein.
Ms. Baumberger went on to work for the ICRC over a fourteen-year period, serving as an interface between the film directors and technicians and the humanitarian experts. As such, she was in charge of the filmmaking logistics, supervising the postproduction stages and managing the stock of audiovisual equipment.
She is particularly at ease with the technical side of the subject, and thus with the ever-evolving technological tools of the trade.

Responsable du domaine Interprétation pour la Suisse alémanique et le Tessin
Franziska von Fischer
Actress, speaker, trainer
Tél. +41 43 233 83 94
franziska.von.fischer@focal.ch
franziskavonfischer.ch

Franziska was born in 1973 and grew up in Zurich. From 1993 to 1997, she studied acting at the University for Music and Theatre in Hamburg (Master of Arts). In 1995 and 1996, she received a study award at the acting competition organised by Migros-Kulturprozent. After completing her training, she worked full-time at the Landestheater Tübingen for three years. She has been working as a freelancer since 2000 and has appeared in numerous premieres of contemporary drama performances. She currently plays the role of Emmi Rothner in Gut gegen Nordwind and also appears in Alle sieben Wellen by Daniel Glattauer at the Theatre of Winterthur. She has participated in various radio plays and regularly works as a speaker for the Swiss television. Trainer (Federal Professional Certification Level 2).

Responsable du domaine Interprétation pour la Romandie / Collaboratrice au domaine Réalisation fiction pour la Romandie
Nicole Borgeat
Screenwriter, director and dramaturg
Tél. +41 76 615 67 46
nicole.borgeat@focal.ch

Born in 1966. After her film directing studies at INSAS (Brussels), she initially worked as a production assistant and as a first assistant.
In 2003, she wrote and directed Demain j’arrête, which received an award in Locarno and was nominated for the Swiss Film Award. She then co-wrote two TV comedies: Pas de Panique (2006), directed by Denis Rabaglia, and Sauvons les Apparences! (2008), which she directed herself. She is about to start shooting her first feature called Le vaste monde.
In the theatre she has worked together with Yan Duyvendak, Omar Ghayatt, Alexandra Bachzetsis and Guillaume Béguin. She co-authored the staging of several performances which toured for a long time in both France and Switzerland.

Carola Stern
Tél. +41 44 450 41 86
carola.stern@focal.ch

Jacqueline Surchat
Screenwriter
Tél. +41 79 245 44 39
jacqueline.surchat@focal.ch

Jacqueline Surchat began her career with the 7-minute feature Au bout du fil, which obtained the school’s best film award in 1989. Her Utopie hors-jeu received the 1992 Award of the Public at the International Comedy Festival in Vevey. Her 30-minute feature Le bonheur à cloche-pied (1994) received the Golden Unicorn at Bludenz and the Best Short Film Award at Upsala.
In 2004, Jacqueline Surchat started focusing mainly on screenplay writing. Between 1991 and 2013, she contributed to the screenplays of some dozen shorts and features. She created Marilou, a series of 24 episodes for RTS and acts as a script consultant for many Swiss, French and Quebec films.
Together with Madeleine Denisart, she published Le cigare et les fourmis, which explores the life of women working in the industry of Canton of Vaud from 1850 to 1950.

A repourvoir

Président de la Fondation
Mariano Tschuor
Tél. +41 79 756 63 00
info@focal.ch

Né en 1958 dans la Surselva (Grisons), Mariano Tschuor est journaliste et dramaturge. De 1982 à 2019, il a travaillé en tant que rédacteur, producteur, rédacteur en chef et directeur auprès de la SRG SSR. Il a été membre de la direction nationale et responsable, entre autres, de la politique cinématographique de la SSR. Il est aujourd’hui à la tête de sa propre société, «Agradora» - gestion et organisation de projets, communication et modération. Il est également président de la Fondation "Denk an mich - Ferien und Freizeit für Menschen mit Behinderung" (une fondation qui s'engage pour offrir des vacances et loisirs à des personnes avec un handicap), de la Commission pour la communication et les médias de la Conférence des évêques suisses et membre de la Commission fédérale des migrations.

Séverine Barde
Camerawoman
Tél. +41 22 344 11 29
sbarde@bluewin.ch

Born in 1966 in Geneva, Switzerland.
After obtaining her higher education entrance qualification (Latin section) from Collège Sismondi in Geneva, she studied film between 1987 and 1989 at the “Institut des Arts de Diffusion” (IAD) in Belgium.
She worked first as second and then as a first assistant camera in Switzerland, Belgium and France. From 1998 she has been as a director of photography in feature and documentary projects.
Among these projects are: Feature documentaries: Made in India; Fiction feature films: Attention aux chiens.

Anke Beining-Wellhausen
Media manager / Avocate
Tél. +41 79 101 83 35
anke.beining@utofilm.com

Née en Allemagne, Anke Beining-Wellhausen a fait des études de droit et en sciences politiques à Bonn/DE, Genève/CH et à la Ohio State University/USA. Titulaire d’un doctorat en droit, elle est admise au barreau à New York et en Allemagne.
Elle est fondatrice et directrice de Utofilm et a coproduit – pour le compte de Teleclub – plus de 60 films de fiction (e.a. HEIDI, ZWINGLI), de documentaires (p.ex. BLUE NOTE RECORDS: BEYOND THE NOTES, #FEMALE PLEASURE) et de séries télévisées (e.a.QUARTIER DES BANQUES). En 2017, elle a été CEO de la société de distribution internationale Global Screen à Munich. et. de 2011 à 2015, directrice, directrice des programmes et COO de Teleclub, la plateforme suisse de TV numérique et de VOD, et responsable des offres Pay TV et des services VOD. Auparavant, elle a été pendant 10 ans ‘Head of Legal, Business Affairs and Affiliate Sales’ et membre de la direction de la Walt Disney Company à Munich. Sa carrière a débuté auprès des sociétés de production et de distribution Senator Film et Kinowelt. Anke Beining vit à Zurich avec son mari et ses filles jumelles.

Ivan Madeo
Producteur
Tél. +41 44 508 12 34
ivan.madeo@contrastfilm.ch

Né en 1976 à Berne. Après des études de journalisme cinématographique et de psychologie à l’Université de Fribourg, il travaille comme concepteur et producteur dans quelques-unes des plus grandes agences publicitaires de Suisse et d’Italie. Il réalise quelques courts métrages avant de fonder, en 2009, les maisons de production Contrast Film Bern et Contrast Film Zürich qui ont produit des films tels que LE CERCLE (2014), HEIMATLAND (2015), DER LÄUFER (2018) et STÜRM (2019), primés à de nombreuses reprises. Il est membre du jury de plusieurs festivals internationaux (Biennale de Venise, Molodist Kiew, FICG Guadalajara, Filmfest Hamburg), a suivi la formation EAVE et a participé au programme "Producers on the Move" au Festival de Cannes. Ivan Madeo est membre du comité de l’association Swiss Film Producers SFP, membre de la European Film Academy, de l’Académie du Cinéma Suisse et de la Commission d’experts pour le film documentaire auprès de l’Office fédéral de la culture OFC.

Gianclaudio Meyer
Animation director and producer
Tél. +41 71 223 78 08
megi@swissonline.ch

M.Sc.ETH, M.A.HSG. Born in 1960. Studies in electronics, marketing, communication, and finance at ETH Zurich and the universities of St. Gallen and Klagenfurt. Partner of the digital animation studios Animagination Sàrl in Lausanne, director and producer of animated films. Long-term instruction in telecommunications, image and sound techniques at the University of Applied Sciences St. Gallen. Member of the Board of the Swiss Animation Film Group. Expert of the Swiss Federal film fund’s grant committee for seven years. Specific interests: animation and experimental films, film financing.

Bettina Oberli
Director
Tél. +41 44 241 47 28
b.oberli@bluewin.ch

Bettina Oberli was born in Interlaken in 1972 and studied filmmaking at the Zurich University of the Arts. Her graduation film Supernova was awarded best newcomer movie of the year.
She has been working in New York for the directors Hal Hartley and Steve Buscemi.
After her awarded debut Im Nordwind (2004) she wrote and directed Late bloomers in 2006. The film became the most succesful Swiss film since 30 years and was sold all over the world. It was the official entry at the academy awards 2008.
In 2009 she directed Tannöd – the murder farm in Germany. The film was shown in theatres and at festivals around the world and won several awards.
In 2013 she directed her first theatre play, Anna Karenina, at the Theater Basel.
Her film Lovely Louise (2013/14) was succesfully released in theatres in Switzerland, Germany, Austria and shown at film festivals all over the world. Stefan Kurt and „the grande dame“ Annemarie Düringer play the leading roles.
Bettina is currently working on a TV Series for Swiss National TV and developping her next feature films Le Vent Tourne, with co-writer Antoine Jaccoud, and Wanda, with co-writer Cooky Ziesche.
Bettina Oberli lives with the DOP Stéphane Kuthy and their two sons in Zürich.

Michael Steiger
Producer
Tél. +41 44 286 79 90
steiger@turnusfilm.com

Michael Steiger was born in Berne in 1965. After receiving his degree (Matura) at the Ecole de Commerce in Neuchâtel, he studied business at the European Business School in Reichhartshausen (D) and enjoyed various exchange semesters in London as well as in Paris. In summer 2005, he became general manager of C-FILMS AG in Zurich and co-owner since 2006.
In July 2015, Michael Steiger and Anita Wasser joined Turnus Film as producers and partners. They are known for many box office hits like: nighttrain to lisbon by Bille August, youth by Paolo Sorrentino, i am the keeper by Sabine Boss, the foster boy by Markus Imboden as well as many TV Movies, like tatort, die akte grüninger by Alain Gsponer and upload by Tobias Ineichen. The productions rascals on the road, grounding – the last days of the swissair and the foster boy and night train to lisbon count among the biggest Box-Office Successes in recent Swiss film history.

Sven Wälti
Head of Coproductions SRG SSR
Tél. +41 31 350 94 60
sven.waelti@srgssr.ch

Sven Wälti has been in charge of SRG co-productions at a general management level since April 2012. He coordinates all of SRG's film funding activities within the framework Pacte de l'audiovisuel and represents SRG's interests in collaborations with ARTE. Previously he was the managing director of Cinésuisse, the umbrella organisation of the Swiss film and audiovisual sector, and a collaborator of SUISSIMAGE. He read law at the University of Fribourg (Switzerland) and completed further training in political communication and cultural management. He is a member of the Federal Film Commission. He is in the Steering Committee of the Prix Europa and on the board of directors of the Ciné-Bulletin.