The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival (NIFFF, 30 June – 8 July) is introducing its multidisciplinary NIFFF Invasion label. Coproduced and financed by the City of Neuchâtel, this free and universally accessible programme will give you a chance to explore the fantasy genre all over the city. As is customary, the venues will include the Open Air on place des Halles, the OFFF area at Jardin anglais, and La Villa in La Petite Rochette; all will outline an equally rich and varied artistic landscape.
THE OPEN AIR BY NIGHT: FIVE RESTORED CLASSICS
The CLASSICS RELOADED category offers our audience the opportunity to (re)discover five cult films for free in the glimmering backdrop of the Open Air. The soul of REBECCA (Alfred Hitchcock, US, 1940) will thus haunt festival-goers, who will also be able to gaze at the orbit of a strange planet in IKARIE XB 1 (Jindrich Polák, CS, 1963) during a screening organised in partnership with the museum of Contemporary Design and Applied Arts (mudac), as well as experience intense paranoia with the restored copy of BLACK OUT (Jean-Louis Roy, CH, 1970) presented in collaboration with the Cinémathèque suisse. Action and cold sweats will be felt throughout the audience with the adventures of John McClane, the protagonist of DIE HARD (John McTiernan, US, 1988) played by Bruce Willis. And of course, THE TASTE OF TEA (Katsuhito Ishii, JP, 2004) promises a sweet moment mixing poetry and extravagance.
THE OPEN AIR BY DAY: STREET ART PERFORMANCES
For the third year in a row, the CCHAR (Centre de Création Helvétique des Arts de la Rue) will organize a full series of free morning shows at the Open Air (place des Halles), running from Monday 3 to Saturday 8 July at 11 a.m. Acrobatics, object theatre, dance, circus, puppet shows… several troupes will take over place des Halles for the pleasure of everyone, young and old.
Monday, July 3rd @ 11 a.m. – 45’
HOUL · Troupe: Sept fois la langue
Physical theatre
Two siblings grow up on the sea side. One morning, the sister gets up and keeps on walking straight on, disappearing into the waves.
Ten years later, on a stormy night, her brother decides to stop waiting and dives in to find her.
Acrobatics, grotesque performances, and object manipulation help HOUL tell the story of a love between a brother and a sister, of a man at sea, of those who would not die.
Tuesday, July 4th @ 11 a.m. – 30’
2 SECONDES ! · Troupe: Petit Monsieur
Burlesque
Petit Monsieur continues exploring modern times.
What would Pandora’s Box contain nowadays, if not one of those novel objects that are now omnipresent? Technologically brilliant, incredibly helpful, but oh so shifty. Paul Durand, still wearing his three-piece suit, is going to find out at his own expense…
Wednesday July 5th @ 11 a.m. – 40’
ON THE ROAD · Troupe: CompaniMi
Circus
Always on the lookout for new encounters, Michel and Eddy roam the streets in their cart. They carry ladders, a rolla bolla, small biscuits, and miscellaneous surprises. The comic duo can play with any situation to make you believe catastrophe is imminent. Expect humour, improvisations, acrobatics, and a great sense of interaction with the crowd. The pair will shake you to your core!
Thursday, July 6th @ 11 a.m. – 30’
PUNCH & JUDY · Troupe: Projet D
Puppets
A hand puppet show inspired by the cruel English tradition of the same name. A hefty dose of dark humour with a pinch of brutality, Mister Punch is a very playful form of spectacle that speaks to grown-ups and children alike!
Friday, July 7th @ 11 a.m. – 20’
PIÈCE DE POCHE · Troupe: (La) Rue Serendip
Dance
Pièce de Poche is about two characters who never get tired of bumping into each other. They get in touch with their own desires and bring their thoughts and habits face to face. The sometimes absurd situations create a mirror effect that reveals our cohabitation mechanisms with humour and gentleness.
Saturday July 8th @ 11 a.m. – 45’
LE ROI DES PETITS-BOUTISTES · Troupe: Botte-Cul
Object theatre
You know this existential problem? Where do you start eating a soft-boiled egg from? It started a bloody war between Petits-Boutistes and Gros-Boutistes, in a faraway kingdom… In spite of herself, Lemmuelle Gulliver, a renowned scientist, ends up at the heart of the conflict. The King of Eggs is scrambled. Pretending to promote the kingdom’s stability and the breakfast’s peace, he engages in his favourite hobby: war! The tyrant likes enacting new laws every Friday, going on a carousel on Saturdays (especially when it’s free) and, his greatest passion, joyfully catapulting sheep and refugees!
CONTEMPORARY ART THROUGH THE PRISM OF FANTASY
In collaboration with CAN Centre d’art Neuchâtel, artist and performer Philippe Wicht will immerse the audience in the filming of a horror movie in La Villa. This interactive performance merges action with mise-en-scène and entertainment. Oliver Sahli and Chris Salter from the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste (ZHdK) will be presenting a virtual reality experience that allows people to explore the infinity of space. Christopher Lanza‘s interactive installation in collaboration with Sarah Mayer, graduate of HE-Arc Ingénierie, will take you to clouds of light in music. Last but not least, a brand new exhibition in collaboration with Maison d’Ailleurs will explore the peculiar and the feminine at Théâtre du Passage, echoing our FEMALE TROUBLE retrospective.
A BESPOKE PROGRAMME FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
In collaboration with the SEO (Service de l’enseignement obligatoire), the NIFFF will show the KID-O-NIFFF shorts programme on the big screen. Directed by Neuchâtel residents as part of the Anima’Films workshops, these stop-motion shorts inspired by the theme of metamorphosis will give prominence to poetry, comedy, and fantasy. La Lanterne Magique will take the youngest audience members on a fabulous animated journey with PRINCESSE DRAGON (Jean-Jacques Denis and Anthony Roux, 2021). Not to forget the BIG STEPS animated shorts programme presented by Fantoche (Baden International Animation Film Festival) which will focus on stories centred on young girls, through unique and exciting points of view.
CULTURADIO – LES ONDES FANTASTIQUES
The CultuRadio cultural mediation project will bring together a group of radio hosts and the cultural community. It will offer a training workshop over a weekend in radio journalism (1-2 July), and do a live show (8 July) from the heart of the festival. The participants will learn about new approaches to creation, and discover various radio show formats.
MUSICAL SPARKS AT THE OFFF AND IN CASE À CHOCS
The OFFF area will be home to a free, nightly music programme at Jardin anglais, in addition to two special evenings in Case à Chocs. The first, called FEMALE TROUBLE (Saturday, July 1st), will mix genres and arts together with the wild beats of three emblematic artists. The second, CLOSING PARTY NIFFF x CASE À CHOCS (Saturday, July 8th), promises to be a grand finale for the ages!
ARCHEOLOGY OF THE FUTURE: PROMETHEUS AT THE LATÉNIUM OPEN AIR
Friday, June 16th, 9:30 p.m. in the Laténium park
As part of the European Archaeology Days, the Open Air screening of PROMETHEUS (Ridley Scott, 2012) will explore the fertile links between imaginary stories about archeology and science fiction cinema. NIFFF General and Artistic Director Pierre-Yves Walder and Assistant Laténium Director Géraldine Delley will be in attendance.
COUNTDOUWN TO NIFFF 2023
Thursday, June 15th: Complete programme and online ticketing on NIFFF.CH
30 June – 8 July: NIFFF 22nd edition