Stefan Markus

Dilemma

17-year-old Edith is celebrating at her friend's house in Zurich when she is dragged to a nightclub by the unscrupulous seducer Jean, who gets her drunk and abuses her. When she becomes pregnant, she asks her father, who is a gynecologist, to perform an abortion. He initially refuses, but eventually agrees to perform the procedure—with fatal consequences.

The Kidnapping

Hans has killed the dog of Firmin, a shepherd. Wild with rage, Firmin kidnaps Elsi, Hans' fiancée and locks her up at his home. Hans, a peddler, vows to find the missing girl. This is what he does and he manages, with the help of Mânu, the village idiot, to give Elsi a letter. On seeing her, the changeling falls in love at first sight with the young woman. Elsi soon realizes that Mânu can become her instrument of vengeance.

Das Menschlein Matthias

Matthias is the illegitimate son of a factory worker. He lives as an indentured child labourer at his dictatorial aunt’s remote guesthouse. The only thing he knows in life are hard work and hard punches. After a sudden death, the unhappy boy finds the opportunity to make his way to his mother. In collaboration with SRF, Cinémathèque suisse, Memoriav and Praesens Film, ZFF once again presents a freshly restored version of a Swiss cinema classic. This 1941 literary adaptation is an almost forgotten jewel of Swiss film history that offers an impressive insight into Eastern Switzerland’s embroidery industry. Born in 1930, a later chapter of the main actor Röbi Rapp’s life was portrayed in the multi-award winning docufiction DER KREIS.

The Land That Dies

In Vendée, an old farmer is gradually abandoned by his family who do not see their future in the fields. Only a cripple in love and abandoned remain at his side.

The Cradle of God

A young intellectual, J. Powers, loses his faith in God after the untimely death of his wife. He devotes his great talents to writing a shockingly blasphemous book, debunking all religion, and then embarks on a trip to Jerusalem. Far from reconciling him to God, the sight of all the different sects worshipping in that ancient city only serves to embitter him and deepen his unbelief. One day, wandering in the country, he loses his way and stops to ask directions at a small house. The inhabitants are a poor but devout family whose daughter, Ruth, revives his broken heart. At the risk of losing her, he confesses to her his loss of faith, and she gently declares that meditation on the Gospels will heal him. He sorrowfully tells her that he wishes he could believe as she does, but it is impossible.