Locarno Open Doors: fostering social development through culture

"Supporting and showcasing talent and films from countries where independent cinema is vulnerable." This is the goal pursued since 2003 by the Locarno Film Festival's Open Doors section, which is backed by the SDC. Participants in the event, which in 2023 runs from 3 to 9 August and online for the rest of the year, will be offered training, sharing and networking opportunities. In the period 2022–24, Open Doors is spotlighting Latin America and the Caribbean. "The countries we focus on are generally under-represented on the international film scene," explains Head of Open Doors Zsuzsi Bánkuti. "The main challenge in these regions is how to create films in an extremely unstable environment, both politically and socially."

Daniela Muñoz from Cuba will be in Locarno this year alongside other film professionals selected to take part in Open Doors. She will be continuing work on the feature-film project La estrella (The Star), which she is producing. Part documentary, part fiction, the film tells the story of Pitufo, a young Cuban who dreams of moving to Florida. "Being a filmmaker in Cuba is extremely challenging," stresses Muñoz, who also had to suspend research on her film when the pandemic broke out. "Cuba has been hit by a social, economic and political crisis that has led to the exodus of thousands of Cubans, including movie industry professionals," explains the filmmaker, adding: "For many years, we didn't have access to the internet, making it extremely difficult to get our films shown on the international circuit."

Muñoz is already familiar with Locarno, where one of her short films was shown in 2022 as part of the Open Doors Screenings (see box below). She describes Open Doors as a "beacon that motivates her to keep moving forward", and says she is delighted to be back in Ticino. "This project allows us to share our experiences, explore creative solutions and learn from each other. It's an ideal space in which to build a network of support and collaboration where we can find new ways to overcome obstacles and strengthen our presence in the film industry." She also stresses the importance of making the public and the international industry aware of the issues addressed in Open Doors projects.

According to Zsuzsi Bánkuti, these issues reflect the current state of our society. "They include themes such as women's and reproductive rights, LGBTQI+ people and minorities, and indigenous and urban realities. These voices reflect on our individual and collective identities and the way they influence our work and our place in society."

Thanks, among other things, to its support for Locarno Open Doors, the SDC is helping artists from the Global South and East to access Swiss and international audiences, markets and professional networks. The SDC also provides targeted support to the cultural sector in partner countries. "Access to art and culture is one of the prerequisites not only for peace, but also for economic and social development. Indeed, respect for diversity of opinion is a factor in ensuring stability in the development of any society. For developing countries on the path to lasting peace or in the midst of a democratic transition, it plays an even more important role," says Rudi von Planta, head of the SDC Culture and Development team.

In this way, the SDC's cultural engagement in partner countries is contributing to multiple Sustainable Development Goals. In Latin America and the Caribbean, Open Doors' focal region from 2022 to 2024, the SDC is supporting a number of projects, including the Young Art Fund (FAJ) in Cuba, and funding for Nicaragua's 'Society, culture and memory' programme, which promotes culture and historical memory in Central America.

The SDC's cultural commitment is an important contribution by Switzerland to implementation of the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, adopted by UNESCO in 2005 and ratified by Switzerland in 2008.