Friday 13 November, 14:30

L’Écriture, Une Invention Prodigieuse – L’Épopée des Signes

Philippe Nicolet’s prize-winning documentary traces the long evolution of writing from prehistoric marks to the first alphabets. Combining archival footage, expert testimony and evocative imagery, the film ponders how painted cave signs and carved objects became enduring systems to convey thought across generations. Poetic and investigative, it examines the materiality of signs, their social functions and the human impulse to record the invisible, offering a contemplative, sensorial journey through the invention of script.

Rue de la Chapelle,
8, Switzerland

Photo Credit: DR

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Photo Credit: DR

Friday 9 October, 18:30

Cinque Uomini, Un Diario. Al Di Là Della Scena

Independent Cinema

Cinélux

An intimate documentary portrait presented in homage to actor Boubacar Samb, Cinque uomini, un diario. Al di là della scena explores the craft of acting through raw, spontaneous footage filmed in 2008 behind the scenes of a production in which five performers portray clandestine migrants. The camera lingers on gestures, rehearsals and quiet moments, revealing the labor, vulnerability and companionship that shape performance. A reflective, cinéma vérité study, the film balances observational immediacy with a tender, humanistic gaze.

In French. Screening followed by a discussion with actors Antonio Buil and Bartek Sozanski. In collaboration with the Geneva Theatre Festival.

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3 September – 10 October

Double Extraction de Nibards

Independent Cinema

Halle Nord

Ciel Sourdeau’s eight-minute, seventeen-second video unfolds as a subversive tutorial: part gore, part experimental film, it repurposes pedagogical forms into an improvised, transgressive bricolage. Mixed by Adrien Kessler, the piece layers tactile sound and rough-edged visuals to probe bodies, identity and the limits of instruction. Its stripped, confrontational aesthetic alternates shock and dark humour, inviting a re-examination of learning rituals and the politics of representation through intimate, unsettling imagery.

Opening: 3 September, 18:00

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1 – 10 October

Animatou

Independent Cinema Kids

Multiple locations

Animatou is the leading animation film festival in French-speaking Switzerland, dedicated to showcasing the best of contemporary animated cinema and championing bold, author-driven works that rarely find space in traditional theatres. Both locally rooted and internationally recognised, the festival brings together generations, cultures and sensibilities through a rich programme of competitive short films, special screenings, feature films, retrospectives, workshops and masterclasses. With a strong commitment to education and year-round activities for schools and the wider public, Animatou has become a key platform for animation in Geneva and beyond.

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9 – 18 October

Everybody’s Perfect – Queer Film Festival

Independent Cinema

Grütli

Every October, the Everybody’s Perfect festival unites the arts and cultural exchange to celebrate the expressions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer people worldwide.

Through film, the festival aims to raise awareness of LGBTQ+ issues, offer diverse perspectives on the world, promote creativity, and foster meaningful dialogue. Open to all, it makes a significant contribution to the evolution of society and attitudes.

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Sunday 11 October, 18:00

Naza

Independent Cinema

Cinélux

Naza, directed by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, is a stark documentary shot on the rooftops of Tel-Aviv that methodically exposes the mechanisms behind Israeli operations that have resulted in mass civilian casualties in Gaza. The film combines intimate nocturnal cinematography with investigative rigor, confronting the politics and human cost of contemporary conflict. From its observational framing to unsettling close‑ups, Naza interrogates responsibility, evidence and the ethical limits of warfare. The directors contributed to No Other Land, Oscar winner 2025.

Original version in Hebrew and English with French subtitles. The screening will be followed by a discussion featuring Riccardo Bocco, Professor Emeritus at IHEID, co-founder of the Centre on Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding, and a Middle East specialist. The discussion will be moderated by Wassim Fattouh, an artist and committed freethinker. Organized in collaboration with the Maison de Quartier de la Jonction as part of the “On casse les murs, on crée des ponts, bienvenu.e.s à la Jonction! ” fortnight.

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Monday 12 October, 20:30

UNIGE x Everybody’s Perfect: Messidor

Independent Cinema

Les Cinémas du Grütli

Alain Tanner’s 1979 Messidor follows two young women, Jeanne and Marie, as they leave Geneva and travel across Switzerland without a fixed destination. Rendered in a cool, observational style emblematic of the new Swiss cinema, the film stages an errant journey that reveals class divides and the pressures that shape female experience. Through open landscapes and intimate encounters, Tanner explores desire, freedom and the uneasy estrangement of youth within a conformist society.

In French.

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L’Écriture, Une Invention Prodigieuse – L’Épopée des Signes