Wendy Pillonel is a fiction and documentary film director who loves dinosaurs, science-fiction and surprising encounters. She received her Master‘s degree in film directing from Zurich University of Arts (ZHdK) in 2017. All her short films were shown at various international festivals and her graduation film “Les Heures-Encre” won the Swiss Film Award 2019.

Besides independent projects, she sometimes works for the Swiss television as a director of docudramas and documentaries and as a lecturer at the ZHdK. She lives and works in Zurich, Switzerland.

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Résumé

Since 2020 Lecturer at Zürcher Hochschule der Künste (ZHdK) – Department Bachelor Film.
Since 2019 Director of several docu-dramas and documentaries for Swiss television – Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen (SRF)
2020 – 2022 Member of the artistic commission for the feature films competition at FIFF – Festival International du Film de Fribourg
2018 – 2021 President of the Fribourg Films association.
2018 – 2019 Director on the research project of ZHdK Immersive Art Space – Virtually Real.
2018 Selection at Locarno Filmmakers Academy among other international promising filmmakers.
2016 Master of Arts in Film Direction at the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste (ZHdK)
2014 Bachelor of Arts in Film at the ZHdK
2010 Bachelor of Arts in Art Education at the Hochschule der Künste Bern (HKB)
1986 Born in Estavayer-le-Lac. Swiss French nationality

Filmography

2022  FUTURA – Un Monde Parfait

18 minutes / Documentary / Episode of the series FUTURA produced by Dschoint Ventschr, Akka Films, Cinédokké in co-production with SRG SSR

Festivals

  • 18th Zurich Film Festival 2022, Programme: Special screenings
  • 28th Geneva International Film Festival 2022 – Special Screening
  • 35th Castellinaria Festival del Cinema Giovane 2022

2022 Team F – Season 2

4x 28 minutes / TV-Documentary series / 4 episodes produced by Nous Productions in co-production with SRG SSR.

2021 Les Nouvelles Eves

80 min / collective documentary by Camille Budin, Annie Gisler, Jela Hasler, Thaïs Odermatt, Wendy Pillonel, Anna Thommen / Emilia productions in co-production with SRG SSR.

*Central Swiss Film Award 2023

Theater release

  • German Switzerland: 18th November 2021
  • Romandie 1st December 2021
    + Tournée with Ciné Doc
  • Tessin: 8th March 2022

Festivals

TV broadcast

  • Sunday 19th of June 2022 at 22:55 on RTS2.
  • Sunday 19th of June 2022 at 23:30 on SRF1.

2020 Bis dass der Tod euch scheidet

91 min / Docu-drama for the series “Es geschah am…” / Production SRF

TV broadcasts

  • Saturday 28.11.2020, at 20:10 on SRF1

2020 Der Postraub des Jahrhunderts

100 min / Docu-drama for the series “Es geschah am…” / Production SRF

TV broadcasts

  • Saturday 25.04.2020, at 20:05 on SRF1
  • Friday 04.01.2021 at 22:30 on 3Sat
  • Wednesday 17.08.22 at 22:25 on SRF1

2019 Lux

8 min / Arri Alexa / Fiction – research project / Production Immersive Art Space, Zurich University of the Arts

2017 Les Heures-Encre

29 min / Arri Alexa / Fiction / Production Peacock Film in coproduction with ZHdK

Awards

2019 Swiss Film Award
* Best Graduation Film 

2019 Festival de cinema de mujeres, FEMCINE
*Special Mention

2018 Festival International du Film de Fribourg
* Foreign Visa Prize

2018 Festival Un poing c’est court
* Prix de la Francophonie 

2017 International Leuven Kort Film Festival
* Audience Award – European Competition

2017  International Student Film & Video Festival of Beijing Film Academy (ISFVF) * Audience Award – International Competition

2017 Festival international des Signes de Nuit
* Edward Snowden Award 

2017 First Steps Awards Berlin 
*nominated as best mid-length film

2017 Studio Hamburg Nachwuchspreis
* nominated as Best Short Film

2016 Periphery

81 min / Arri Alexa / Fiction / collective anthology film / Production ZHdK

Festivals

  • 12th Zurich Film Festival, Programme: Focus Switzerland, Germany, Austria / Competition
  • 52. Solothurner Filmtage 2017 / in competition: PRIX DU PUBLIC
  • 11. Internationales Fünf Seen Filmfestival 2017 / in competition: Perspektive junges Kino
  • Mostra Internacional de Cinema – IFF – Sao Paulo Int.Film Festival  Sao Paolo | Brasilien / special Focus Schweiz

2015 Destiny

16 min 20 / Arri Alexa / Fiction / Production ZHdK

Festivals

  • 51. Solothurner Filmtage 2016, Programme: Upcoming Talents
  • Festival du film étudiant Québec, 2016
  • Ascona Film Festival, 2017
  • 8th Chalon Tout Court Film Festival, 2017
  • Gässli Film Festival 2017, Basel
    * Best Swiss Short Film, Gässli Film Festival 2017
    * Best Director, Gässli Film Festival 2017

TV Broadcasts

  • 2015.04.23 at 00.10 on SRF1 | Kurt Früh Reloaded
  • 2016.10.05 at 21.40 on SRF2

2014 Mirages

14 min 50 / Arri Alexa / Fiction / Production ZHdK

Festivals

  • Bangalore Short Film Festival 2014, India
  • Upcoming Filmmakers, 2014, Lucerne
  • International Student Film & Video Festival of Beijing, 2014, China
  • Ascona Film Festival, 2015
  • Festival du film étudiant Québec, 2015
  • The 4th International Water and Film Event, 2015, Daegu, South Korea
  • International Nature Film Festival 2015 Gödöllő, Hungary
  • Gässli Film Festival, 2015, Basel
  • Innsbruck Nature Film Festival 2015, Austria
    * 1st Prize in the category Best Short Film

2013 Eldorado

11 min 50 / Arri Alexa / Fiction / Production ZHdK

Festivals

  • Nuit du court-métrage Fribourg, 25.10.13, opening film
  • Festival du film étudiant Québec, 2014
  • Aesthetica Short Film Festival 2014, York, UK

2012 Parachutes

5 min 50 / 35 mm, Arri Alexa / Fiction / Production ZHdK

Festivals

  • Shnit Festival 2012, Bern
  • Kurz und schön 2012, Köln, Germany
  • 48. Solothurner Filmtage 2013, Soleure
  • Swiss Panorama 2013, Sao Paulo, Brazil
  • Amalty Film Festival 2013, Kazakhstan
  • Jugendfilmtage 2013, Zürich
  • Aesthetica Short Film Festival 2013, York, UK
  • Ascona Film Festival, 2014
  • Festival du film étudiant Québec, 2014
  • Ciné Globe, Meyrin, 2014
  • Festival de Cinéma de la Ville de Québec, 2014
  • Innsbruck Nature Film Festival 2014, Austria
  • The 4th International Water and Film Event, 2015, Daegu, South Korea

TV broadcasts

  • 17.11.2012, at 23:45 on WDR Westdeutscher Rundfunk | Köln
  • 23.12 2012, at 22:25 on WDR Westdeutscher Rundfunk | Programm Eins Festival | Köln.