Miscellaneous New film studio aims to help Swiss film grow
Swiss Studios, an association of five film production companies, wants to strengthen Swiss film and make it more international. How is this to be achieved? An interview with CEO Malte Probst, who knows that art and commerce have to come together in the end.
19.01.2025, 11:00
SDA
When five film production companies merged to form Swiss Studios at the end of October 2024, it caused quite a stir in the industry.
The new entity aims to become a center for Swiss film and television projects. "More ideas are to be brought to market maturity," says CEO Malte Probst in an interview with the Keystone-SDA news agency. New financial opportunities are to be developed and synergies identified and better utilized.
After just under three months, Probst says: "We have already arrived on the market and have already made a difference." But: "I don't think our message has gotten through everywhere yet." He has the impression here and there that there are fears that someone is being excluded. "We're not taking anything away from anyone and projects that don't come from the kitchens of the five participating production companies are also welcome," says Probst. The goal is clear: "We want to advance Swiss film together and make it more international."
As a concrete example, Probst cites the film "The Queen of the Eiger" by Michael Bühler, which is due to be released in 2026. This is an incredibly impressive story about a strong but little-known woman. "How can we make this fiction documentary bigger?"
Put simply, a film project goes through five stages before it can be seen on the big screen: the idea leads to the script. This is followed by funding and financing. Then the film is shot and finally the focus is on marketing.
This is how Swiss Studios gets involved
The first idea
"We receive ideas all the time," says Probst. The task now is to sift through them, sit down together and assess the proposals. The key questions are: Who is the project for? Who should see it? What can be told and how? Are there already similar projects? It is also about broadening the view and looking at what can be sold internationally, says Probst.
The step to the screenplay
Once a project has been given the green light, it is a matter of "creating a convincing script", says the CEO. At the same time, the channels through which the films, documentaries and series can be pre-financed and which collaborations with TV stations or streaming providers are conceivable are evaluated. According to Probst, there are currently around 60 projects in various stages at the same time. "We are currently pursuing around twelve," says the former Sky Germany manager, who most recently worked as CPO Fiction at Blue Entertainment.
The question of financing
Financing a film or TV project is the most complex and sometimes most arduous part of the journey, says Probst - "the piece de résistance", as he calls it. Regional funding is necessary and right, says Probst, "but it can also be cumbersome and unmanageable and is not enough for an internationally oriented project".
Despite the Lex Netflix, which obliges streaming platforms such as Netflix to invest a portion of their revenue generated in Switzerland in Swiss productions, funding is very cautious. "We are a long way from an automatism," says Probst. This also has to do with the fact that TV broadcasters and streaming providers need program content that resonates with audiences and therefore often demand a strong say. "This can lead to tensions," says Probst. Everything can be traced back to this one pragmatic question: What makes sense?
Filming is now underway
In the medium term, according to Probst, Swiss Studios wants to have a permanent crew in key positions that is available for its own projects, but also for third-party projects. "We also want to help train specialists and talents in Switzerland," says Probst. "Last but not least, we want to digitalize wherever possible and use all these measures to help strengthen Switzerland as a production location and make it future-proof."
Marketing is crucial
Probst is aware of the tension between producers and marketers. One side often wants to hold on to its ideas and ideals. The other wants to earn money. This requires a lot of exchange and, above all, the ability and willingness to compromise. "There is no one-size-fits-all answer. It has to be negotiated again and again," says Probst. Because nothing sells automatically. Probst likes dialect productions, for example, but points out: "If we only launch something in one Swiss dialect, we make the target group smaller right from the start."
Probst is also aware of the tension between art and commerce. He is completely pragmatic in this respect: "Commerce is not fundamentally stupid and art is not fundamentally better." Or to put it even more simply: "In the best case, art and entertainment go together."
Malte Probst is satisfied with the response achieved so far and formulates the goal as follows: "Swiss Studios should be nothing less than an aid to the growth of Swiss film. "*
*This text by Raphael Amstutz, Keystone-SDA, was realized with the help of the Gottlieb and Hans Vogt Foundation.
