Anja Kofmel
Chris the swiss
Part of
Chris the swiss

Chris the swiss

Anja Kofmel

2018
90 min.
Switzerland, Croatia, Germany and Finland
English and German
Subtitles: Catalan and Spanish

In the early 90s, the War in Yugoslavia broke out and young people from all over Europe went there to fight, among them a Swiss journalist, Chris.

Datasheet

Show
Direction
Anja Kofmel
Executive Production
Sereina Gabathuler
Sound
Markus Krohn
Distribution
DocsBarcelona Distribution
Production
Samir, Sinisa Juricic, Heino Deckert, Iikka Vehkalahti
Co-production
Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion AG, Nukleus Film, MA.JA.DE. Filmproduktion, IV Films
Edition
Stefan Kälin
Photography
Simon Guy Fässler
Animation
Simon Eltz, Serge Valbert
Music
Marcel Vaid
Synopsis

In the early 90s, the War in Yugoslavia broke out and young people from all over Europe went there to fight, among them a Swiss journalist who was found dead in Croatia dressed as a mercenary. Twenty years later, filmmaker Anja Kofmel investigates the reason for his death and what brought her cousin to war.

Thanks to a journal that Chris left, Anja Kofmel begins to imagine the last few months of her cousin’s life. What begins as a curiosity to understand the motivations of a 27-year-old Swiss young man to become part of a group of armed mercenaries (PIV), many miles away from his home, becomes a personal and accurate research which brings together witnesses such as the members of his family, his former journalism colleagues, PIV mercenaries and even the former terrorist “Carlos El Chacal”. The image that little by little is created in Anja Kofmel’s mind about the last months of Chris’s life becomes a very personal animated world that recreates the story of an announced death.

About the direction
Anja Kofmel

Anja Kofmel

Director

Anja Kofmel studied Animation at Lucerne School of Design and Art (HSLU). During that time, Anja spe...

DocsBarcelona Trajectory

2019
Jury Special Mention, DocsBarcelona
Edició 2019
2019
Panorama, DocsBarcelona Festival
Edició 2019
2020
Docs del Mes · February
Edició 2020

Awards and festivals

Annecy International Animation Film Festival
France, 2018
Jury Special Mention · DocsBarcelona
Spain, 2019
Semaine de la Critique · Festival de Cannes
France, 2018
Best of Fests · IDFA
Netherlands, 2018
Festival de Cine Europeo de Sevilla
Spain, 2018
Anja Kofmel
Chris the swiss
Watch the trailer
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Reviews

A stirring, suspenseful and technically accomplished work.

— Hollywood Reporter

A compelling and artistic hybrid of memoir, biographical documentary and general discussion of why young men feel their pulses quicken at the idea of fighting in a foreign war.

— Variety

Kofmel opens doors and in each one he discovers even deeper darkness.

— Cinegarage
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