War also threatens cultural diversity.

By Sergio Ferrari, from Bern, Switzerland - The fragile North calls upon the cultural South. The Fribourg Film Festival opens its doors to a hundred films, mainly from Latin America, Asia and Africa.

When this festival was founded in the 80s, it was the main Swiss event dedicated to cinema from what was then called the Third World. Later, it expanded its selection to other regions – especially Eastern Europe – as well as to themes and sections that transcend geographical boundaries.

The 39th edition of the FIFF (Fribourg International Film Festival) will screen 108 films from 52 countries during the last ten days of March. Among them are 14 Latin American and 2 Spanish films, some of which have just been produced: 20 are world premieres and 47 are European. Organizers expect to surpass the 48.000 entries from the previous year, including no fewer than 11.000 students of all ages, particularly from the Canton of Fribourg and its University City, just 30 kilometers from Bern, the Swiss capital.

The fight for freedoms

When trying to find the common thread of this 39th edition, Thierry Jobin, artistic director of FIFF, doesn't hesitate to define it as: "The spirit of resistance." According to Jobin, and referring to countries that the film market doesn't usually prioritize, the one hundred films selected this year – from the 2.100 that reached the selection committee – "invite us to remember the importance of our freedoms and to be aware of how fragile they are." "More than ever, as we like to say," he emphasizes, "if these films aren't shown at FIFF, they won't be seen anywhere else. In fact, only three of the 67 releases will later reach the commercial circuit of Swiss cinemas."

When discussing resistance, Jobin emphasizes the feminine aspect and explains that ten of the sixteen selected short films feature a female protagonist. Another common aspect among some of the films, he says, is "their marked interest in stories about animals, or that more broadly question the relationship between human beings and nature." He observes that today's brutal events, framed within the global reality of climate crisis and wars, "show that our society is governed by bestial rules. Human beings revert to their animalistic condition and are tempted to become like them in order to find new solutions." "These stories of violence and disillusionment, but also of solidarity," Jobin points out, "together, launch a cry of anger and hope." Jobin also notes that, in some countries, it is often situations of political and institutional crisis that stimulate the production of quality films. "It's not just a matter of resources," explains the director of FIFF, because "crises foster creativity. Soon we will see films of great substance from the United States," a result of the cultural resistance to this new phase that opens up with Donald Trump's new presidential term.

The contribution of Latin America

"I am very happy that 4 of the 12 films in the international competition are Latin American productions," shares the director of FIFF, alluding to Brazil's active presence with... The silence of the oysters, by Marcos Pimentel, and Ladies, by Mikaela Plotkin. "Both are very interesting," says Jobin, adding that "the latter seduced me because it presents a very strange theme, beyond what is presented through non-standard comedies: pleasure in old age, the desire to enjoy, even on a sexual level." The other two Latin American films are Lo deseado, by Argentine filmmaker Darío Mascambroni, and zafari, by Mariana Rondón, a co-production of Peru, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and France. "Two very dear filmmakers, who have already been to Friburgo," recalls Jobin, who emphasizes that "it is important for us and for the public to be able to follow the work of well-known filmmakers and to be able to follow them in their artistic trajectory." Three Colombian short films (La mona, Mañana e Lanawaru) anticipate the strength of the new cinema from that country. In the Little Planet section, the Peruvian film is being shown. Root, by Franco García Becerra. In reviewing the program for this new edition of the Fribourg Film Festival, Jobin couldn't help but recall some of the landmark Ibero-American films that marked an era, and he does so through an anecdotal account: "We asked the former producer and great cinephile Jérôme Paillard, who made the Cannes Film Festival market the most important in the world, to present five of his favorite films to the Fribourg audience at this edition. His choice reflects his profound knowledge and passion for the cinema of this great cultural continent. Three of the five films Paillard chose were the Argentinian films..." Wild tales (2014), by Damién Szifrón, and The secret of your eyes (2009), by Juan José Campanella, as well as the Spanish Snow White (2012), by Pablo Berger".

The Swiss chainsaw

The cultural commitment that the Fribourg Film Festival has been promoting for years, offering the Swiss public the opportunity to enrich themselves with the cinematography of the Global South, is now threatened. At the end of January, the official Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) decided to renounce all its strategic partnerships in support of multiculturalism in Switzerland. Although this economic measure represents a very modest part of the SDC's total budget, which depends on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it affects, in one way or another, the existence of 12 Swiss cultural institutions, including the FIFF itself; the Open Doors project at the Locarno Film Festival; Artlink; the African section of the Geneva Book Fair; the Winterthur Film Festival; the alternative film distributor Trigon Film; the Vision of Real Documentary Festival; UNESCO funds for cultural diversity; the activities of the Zurich Theatre and the Vision South-East Film Production Fund.

Starting this year, funding for these cultural institutions has been reduced by 45%, from US$4 million to US$2,2 million. In 2029, the cut will be total. These budget cuts, defined without any prior dialogue with the affected institutions, are part of the budgetary adjustment measures adopted by the SDC. From 2025, almost US$125 million per year will no longer reach many countries in the Global South. Behind this decision are new federal requirements affecting the international cooperation sector, as a consequence of a substantial increase in the security and defense budget in response to a new priority: military and reconstruction support for Ukraine.

A recent statement from these 12 affected cultural entities emphasizes "that the Parliament's decision and its implementation by the SDC are destroying, without warning, a network that has been built over a long period and is putting respected and recognized Swiss organizations under pressure." It stresses that they are "deeply shocked by the change of course chosen by a country with a humanitarian tradition and a signatory to the UNESCO Convention for the Protection of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions." Finally, it argues that "at a time of increasing polarization, Switzerland is sending a worrying signal that could fuel the rise of populism." This situation is aggravated by the global context, where spaces for international dialogue are increasingly restricted, as are mechanisms for promoting cultural diversity, freedom of expression, economic transition, and social cohesion.

Art and culture offer a space for critical debate and peaceful dialogue, these cultural entities emphasize, and that is why "Switzerland must play its pioneering role and contribute to stability and peace throughout the world." They argue that "these cuts send a very grim signal and are an alarming step towards the dismantling of culture at the federal level."

The Fribourg Film Festival, which loses US$330.000 annually due to this cut, immediately took steps to try to find funds from other sources. A worrying and challenging situation at the same time, according to Philippe Clivaz, its administrative manager. This reflection is also shared by Thierry Jobin, who cannot understand the lack of historical and strategic vision of the Swiss authorities: "They are attacking an entire cultural fabric that has been forming for years, which has multiplied synergies, opened doors for cultural production in the South, and enriched, to an even greater extent, Swiss cultural diversity itself."

The Swiss chainsaw and the cuts it entails in international cooperation (including in the field of culture) have a single political objective: to increase the security and defense budget by almost 600 million dollars a year. Europe's unbridled race to increase its military spending budgets is creating collateral victims. The welfare state, cooperation, and culture are already paying the consequences, with very visible tributes, such as the historically active and innovative cinema of the Global South in Switzerland.

Translation: Rose Lima