This March, the Embassy of Switzerland in China and its Consulates General in Shanghai, Chengdu, Guangzhou and Hong Kong continue to bring the best acts to the month-long celebration with a series of film, music and language activities. The aim of the festival, running from March 1 to March 31 is to promote the French culture and its heritage, French language learning as well as to improve cross-cultural understanding.

The Swiss Embassy invites you to join the various events, or follow them on its social media platforms. 

Film Encounter: ‘Encordés’

Documentary, 106 minutes, 2017, www.encordes.com

For one and a half years, Swiss filmmaker Frédéric Favre documented the preparation of three ski mountaineers competing in the Patrouille des Glaciers, a grueling race across the Swiss Alps. Florence, who wishes to take part in memory of her father, is not used to participating in a team. Guillaume, an accomplished skier, struggles to find a balance between family, work, and his passion. Antoine, who has just recovered from life difficulties, is eager to prove his worth to the world.

The documentary, which featured at the 2017 International Documentary Film Festival in Munich, takes viewers on a raw, intimate journey shaped by the three protagonists' innermost motivations and transformative adventures.

Festivals (a selection)

2018 Solothurn Film Festival (Solothurner Filmtage), Switzerland;

2017 International Documentary Film Festival in Munich; 

23rd Visions of Reality (Visions du Réel) International Film Festival, Nyon, Switzerland 

Biography: Frédéric Favre

Born in 1976, Frédéric Favre has been working as an independent film director since 2011. He completed his Master’s Degree in French and Philosophy at the University of Geneva in 2002. Between 2004 and 2011, he worked as an assistant director, notably for Daniel Schweizer. He received a Master’s Degree in film studies with special mention at the ECAL/HEAD in 2014.

Major works: Encordés (2017), Cyclic (2015), Antigo Para Sempre (2013), Dernière Minute (2013), A Small Step for Men (2012), Making of Dirty Paradise (2011).

Available for interviews in Beijing from March 7 to 9 and on 11th.  For other cities, please refer to the screening agenda.

Mars en Folie 2018: Le Roi Angus

Le Roi Angus, a five-piece band from Switzerland, will be touring China with other three bands from Belgium, France and Quebec from March 15 to 31, showing audience the charm of French chansons.

Fresh, exciting, and ambitious – that’s the current state of Geneva’s indie music scene. Among the current crop of bands is Le Roi Angus, a five-piece outfit blending vintage pop with psychedelic rock. With their unique formula, the band has received acclaim from the Swiss media and music fans alike.

Led by frontman Martin Casim Admonk, the band has toured far and wide since the release of debut album Îles Essentiel (2015). Their six-city China tour will feature songs from their new album, Est-ce que tu vois le tigre? (2018). www.leroiangus.com

Available for interviews in Beijing on March 15, and 20-21. For other cities, please refer to the detailed agenda.

Dictée de Pivot in China

 “La Dictée de Pivot” (“Pivot Dictation”) returns to China for its third edition this March. After their initial competition and selection through social media, finalists will be invited to the Embassy of Switzerland in China on March 20 for the final competition. Winners will be awarded prizes by organizers. The dictation is co-organized by the embassies of France, Switzerland and Quebec Government Office in China to promote French language learning. An iconic event of the Francophonie Festival, the first online competition of Dictée de Pivot in 2016 attracted more than 30,000 participants from more than 250 Chinese cities.

This year and for the first time, an exhibition of paintings, by and with the presence of renowned Swiss artist Serge d’Urach, will be held on the sideline of the dictation.

Facts about the French-speaking regions in Switzerland

 * Switzerland has four national languages: German, French, Italian and Romansh.

  * In Switzerland, French is spoken by around 22.6% of the population.

 * In four Swiss cantons, French is the sole official language: Geneva, Vaud, Neuchâtel, and Jura. There are three cantons where French and German have co-official status: Bern, Fribourg and Valais.