Film festival launches in Beijing to share Switzerland’s cultural diversity with Chinese viewers

Swiss Ambassador to China Jürg Burri at the film event Photo: Courtesy of Embassy of Switzerland in China

Hosted by the Embassy of Switzerland in China, "Diversity + Me," the 3rd Swiss film festival has recently been launched in Beijing to showcase to Chinese audiences the strength of Switzerland's cultural and societal diversities.

This year's film festival includes ten Swiss productions of various genres, such as shorts, documentaries, and fiction films.

In Dazwischen, three 12-year-old girls embark on a journey to find answers to how their "girl" identity is perceived by society. Rotzloch, one of the event's documentaries, tells the story of four refugee men's journeys to discover their life purposes against the backdrop of an unfamiliar cultural background.

Becoming Giulia, another documentary featured in the event, reveals how a ballet dancer, returning from maternity leave, struggles to find a new balance between the competitive world of an elite ballet company and her new family life.

In addition to shorts and documentaries, four films have been showcased in the fiction category. While Rider Jack depicts a story of a father-son relationship, the film Mario takes audiences into the world of Mario, a football player, to see how he grapples with the universal dilemma of choosing between fame and family.

While these productions may not align with mainstream commercial film tastes, they are dedicated to showcasing Switzerland's ability to embrace diversities in areas such as disability, age, social mobility, equality, and choice over gender issues to Chinese audiences.

Swiss Ambassador to China, Jürg Burri, expressed his pride in showcasing Switzerland's strength in diversity at the event. He stated, "Storytelling through film is a powerful tool for fostering empathy towards those who are different from ourselves. I look forward to discovering with you the stories of Swiss diversity at this film festival."

For the first time in 2023, the film festival showcased these films to the general public inside the Embassy of Switzerland in China. These productions will also tour Lumiere cinemas across the country for the following month.

Prior to the current "Diversity + Me" program, the Swiss Film Festival has been held annually, with the two previous events titled Smart & Sustainable and Swissplained being well-received by Chinese audiences.