New SRF documentary Secondos serve in the Swiss army with so much passion
The documentary "Real Swiss" shows secondos who put their heart and soul into the Swiss army. In the picture: Thuruban Tuchchathanan with his comrades.
Image: SRF/Beauvoir Films
Saâd Dhif (right) is also a committed citizen in the military. He has Tunisian roots.
Image: SRF/Beauvoir Films
Luka Popadić is the main actor in the documentary. The director with Serbian roots is a captain in the Swiss army. He originally wanted to become a rapper.
Image: SRF/Beauvoir Films
The documentary "Real Swiss" shows secondos who put their heart and soul into the Swiss army. In the picture: Thuruban Tuchchathanan with his comrades.
Image: SRF/Beauvoir Films
Saâd Dhif (right) is also a committed citizen in the military. He has Tunisian roots.
Image: SRF/Beauvoir Films
Luka Popadić is the main actor in the documentary. The director with Serbian roots is a captain in the Swiss army. He originally wanted to become a rapper.
Image: SRF/Beauvoir Films
"Echte Schweizer" is a documentary about secondos who put their heart and soul into serving in the Swiss army. The SRF co-production is a mix of docutainment with a good dose of humor à la "Die Schweizermacher".
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Over a third of Swiss soldiers have a migration background. Officers Saâd, Thuruban, Andrija and Luka talk about their careers in the Swiss army in "Echte Schweizer".
- A documentary that uses humor to shed light on major themes such as identity, homeland, integration and loyalty.
- "Echte Schweizer" was broadcast on Friday, July 11 at 10.25 pm on SRF 1 or can be seen on Play SRF.
Over 30 years ago, in the Yugoslavian cultural association in Baden, the young Luka Popadić holds a hand-painted poster up to the camera: "There are two homes in my little heart."
Luka Popadić, the main character of the documentary "Echte Schweizer", grew up as a secondo in Switzerland and dreamed of becoming a rapper in his youth - the film tells his eventful life story.
But he ends up in the military and suffers a stroke of fate during his time in the army. He decides to go through with the service anyway. The military gives him structure and support during this difficult time; it is a kind of surrogate family.
"I'm proud of both"
And Luka Popadić begins to appreciate the Swiss military and makes a career for himself - he makes it to captain. It tells of the conflict in his heart that many migrant children experience. Popadić says: "I'm a Serbian filmmaker and a Swiss officer, I'm proud of both."
But what drives young secondos to make a career in the military? Captain Thuruban Tuchchathanan has Sri Lankan roots, he says in the documentary: "The military is part of the Swiss, it's a unique system and I wanted to be a part of it".
"Many people with a migration background come from countries where there is or has been war. This is probably why the military is more important to them - they know what war means and that the military is needed," says Captain Andrija Stojković, for example, who, like the filmmaker, is also of Serbian origin.
"Echte Schweizer" is a deep dive into the world of the Swiss military and an insight into how they deal with secondos who make a career there - from the feeling of being at home in two cultural worlds. And sometimes being a little different from the RS buddy in the next bed, who is an alphirt in Valais.
At the center are three officers with a migration background: Saâd, Thuruban and Andrija. They have Tunisian, Sri Lankan and Serbian roots and feel at home in two cultural worlds.
They talk openly about their identity issues, everyday racism and what it means to want to serve Switzerland despite everything. The film shows: Home is more than just a passport.
Funny fade-ins
Flashbacks from Swiss history with a military focus lend the documentary "Echte Männer" a light and funny touch that is sometimes reminiscent of the blockbuster "Die Schweizermacher".
"Echte Schweizer" was awarded the "Prix du Public" 2024 in Solothurn. Captain Popadić guides the audience through the film with a humorous undertone. He emphasizes that the Swiss army is his favourite army - even if the dash on the C is not possible on the name tag of his uniform, despite repeated requests.
