Tips for the Winterthur Short Film Festival 2025

The Winterthur International Short Film Festival is clearly a cult event. However, we keep receiving reports from distraught viewers who have ended up in the wrong film. To find the right programme for you in this creative jungle, you now have three options:

1. Get an overview with our general festival report
2. Explore yourself and your preferences with the Short Film Festival quiz
3. Let us spoonfeed you this year's programme tips here:

One focus this year is on dance. We were particularly taken with the "Dance with me" programme, which, with its record-breaking eight short films, seems to run the gamut of human emotions. But beware, before you get too carried away: Two "Motion in Motion" screenings intervene with Tanzfest Winterthur!

Dance with me:
6.11.2025, 14:15, Maxx 2
7.11.2025, 20:00, Maxx 3
8.11.2025, 18:30, Maxx 2

Obviously, Swiss-German film is a bit of a political issue, as it is relatively underrepresented in the Swiss competition. In the meantime, other formats have emerged to provide a platform for local filmmaking (Züri Shorts, for example), but we are still looking forward to this programme with its 50/50 distribution. Also because Luisa Zürcher's "Ich bin nicht sicher" is one of our favourite films!

Swiss Competition I: In Doubt for Doubt:
5.11.2025, 12:00, Maxx 2
5.11.2025, 20:00, Maxx 6
8.11.2025, 21:00, Maxx 1
9.11.2025, 16:30, Kino Cameo

Dive into the archive of image films that weren't called that back then and discover a Switzerland that no longer exists, but which has also strongly influenced the present. Today, we see these contemporary testimonies with fascinatingly different eyes than they probably wanted to be perceived at the time.

Useful Image(s) - Construction of national identity in Swiss commercial films
6.11.2025, 20:00, Cameo cinema

The ideal choice for anyone who wants to take a look at the cinematic future of our country, doesn't want to spend any money and has Thursdays off. It's particularly touching when debut works flicker across the big screen for the first time and the filmmakers themselves have their say afterwards!

Swiss Film School Day:
Session 1: 6.11.2025, 11:00, Maxx 1, free admission
Session 2: 6.11.2025, 12:00, Maxx 1, free admission
Session 3: 6.11.2025, 14:30, Maxx 1, free admission
Session 4: 6.11.2025, 16:30, Maxx 1, free admission

Whether it's the silly "Man or Tree", the mysterious "Tian Xia Wu Ya" or "Whateverest", which has stayed with Sebastian since its premiere in 2012, the disco culture has blossomed in wondrous ways. This programme is certainly a hidden gem of this year's festival edition.

Disco Is Not Dead:
7.11.2025, 23:00, Maxx 1

29th International Short Film Festival, 4 to 9 November 2025

Go to the full programme here.