Zurich Film Festival (ZFF) is an annual film festival that has been held in Zürich, Switzerland, since 2005. The festival's main focus is to promote emerging filmmakers from all over the world. In three competition categories only first, second, or third directorial works are admitted. There are three competition sections: International Feature Film, International Documentary Film, and Focus: Switzerland, Germany, and Austria, which focuses on these three production countries. Several industry events take place in the framework of the festival. the festival director is Christian Jungen.
History
Nadja Schildknecht, Karl Spoerri and Antoine Monot Jr. founded the festival in 2004. Until 2020 the festival was co-directed by Nadja Schildknecht (managing director) and Karl Spoerri (artistic director).
In 2004, Karl Spoerri and Tim Geser decided to bring the English digital film festival onedotzero_adventures in moving images to Zürich. From 29 to 31 October 2004, the festival was a guest at the Hochschule für Gestaltung und Kunst in Zürich. This small event developed into the Zurich Film Festival and its core team. In spring 2005, Karl Spoerri, Nadja Schildknecht and Antoine Monot, Jr. founded Spoundation Motion Picture GmbH, which has been running the Zurich Film Festival ever since and is headed by Karl Spoerri and Nadja Schildknecht. Antoine Monot, Jr. was artistic director from its inception until 2008, before handing over this role to Karl Spoerri.
The 1st Zurich Film Festival (5 to 9 October 2005) was held in the Plaza cinemas in Zürich. The main focus was on debuts - around eight first films were presented in a competition series. Other film series were called "Debut Classics" and "Züri Bellevue", among others. In its first year, the festival was well received by the public and attracted 8,000 visitors, but the press and the industry were still sceptical about the young festival. The "onedotzero_ch" series was part of the ZFF every year until 2011.
In 2006, the 2nd Zurich Film Festival (2 to 6 October 2006) the Golden Eye awards were awarded in three competition categories (Best Newcomer Feature Film, Best Newcomer Documentary Film, and Debut Feature Film). New programme sections included "New World View".
The young Zurich Film Festival took a big leap in 2007 when it was held for the first time over the length of 11 days. Over 50 world, European or Swiss premieres were presented on the "Film Mile" along the Limmat. The number of spectators rose to 27,000 within three years. For the first time, the Zurich Film Festival had a centre in the heart of the city: a large tent on Rathausplatz became the meeting place for cinema enthusiasts and filmmakers. In 2007, the festival was expanded to include the Zurich Coproduction Forum.
From 2008 to 2012, the Zurich Film Festival continued to develop and the number of visitors doubled again.
In 2009, the Zurich Film Festival was overshadowed and at the same time made world famous after guest of honour Roman Polański was arrested upon entering Switzerland and placed under house arrest for nine months. In 2011 he returned to the Zurich Film Festival to collect his honorary award two years late.
In 2011 a new festival centre was established on the Sechseläutenplatz. The Zürich Opera House has also been established as the venue for the award night. In 2011, the ZFF offered school screenings for the first time. In 2012, the ZFF included two films especially for children aged 6 and over and two films for primary school pupils in its programme for the first time.
Since August 2016, the NZZ media group has held a stake in Zurich Film Festival AG, the organiser of the Zurich Film Festival, and in the marketing organisation Spoundation Motion Picture AG.
For the 20th anniversary edition in 2024, the ZFF set a new record, with 140,000 visitors attending the festival, which featured a total of 107 films.
Governance and description the festival director is Christian Jungen.
Mehmet Inan became Managing Director of Spoundation Motion Picture AG in March 2026. In this position, he works on the ZFF leadership team and oversees marketing, partnerships, and guest services.
Programme sections Competition In the competition, only first, second and third directorial works are presented in three categories (10-14 films each): Focus Competition (Switzerland, Germany, Austria) Feature Film Competition Documentary Competition
Film selections out of competition
Gala Premieres In the "Gala Premieres" section, film premieres by established filmmakers are celebrated every evening, mostly in the presence of the director and cast, with both feature film and larger documentary productions being shown. The films are presented as world, European, German-language, or Swiss premieres.
Special Screenings In the "Special Screenings" series, the Zurich Film Festival shows a selection of festival hits and brand-new films from the fields of fiction and documentary.
Hashtag The "Hashtag" section is dedicated to films that focus on current topics and themes that dominate conversations around the world. Various feature and documentary Films that shine a light on the issue from different angles are presented. So far, the focus has been on the following topics: #SaveDemocracy (2025), #BigCityLife (2024), #Masculinity (2023), #MyReligion (2022),#letSEXplore (2021), #GetUpStandUp (2020), #SpeakingTheTruth (2019), #BigData (2018)
New World View The "New World View" program puts a spotlight on a new generation of filmmakers from a selected production country that has provided some of the most innovative new filmmaking in recent years. The section has been dedicated to the following countries: Korea (2023), Spain (2022), Tunisia (2021), France (2020), Colombia (2019), Italy (2018), Hungary (2017), Mexico (2016), Iran (2015), India (2014), Brazil (2013), Sweden (2012), Turkey (2011), Australia (2010), Argentina (2009), Israel (2008), Russia (2007).
Border Lines The "Border Lines" section presents films dealing with border situations occurring in present-day world conditions, and humanitarian projects, territorial and social conflicts, and conflicts between individuals and the state. It is organized in collaboration with Amnesty International, Human Rights Partner of ZFF.
Window The "Window" section comprises windows through which one can take a look at various cinematographic traditions. The "Hong Kong Window" presents a selection of unique and daring new films from Hong Kong ans is presented in collaboration with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Berlin. The "San Sebastián Window" presents a selection of four films from Spain and Latin America that were screened as part of the San Sebastián Film Festival.
Sounds The "Sounds" section celebrates the relationship between film and music in all its diverse aspects. With a diverse selection of feature and documentary films, the soundtrack takes center stage - whether the film shines its light on musicians, captivates with exceptional film music, or deals with the topic of sound in a very fundamental way. The program is complemented by two special screenings: One accompanied by live music and one with a live commentary by the film composer.
ZFF for Kids At the 9th Zurich Film Festival, the children's programme was expanded with a separate audience award. The aim of the film series is to introduce children and young people to sophisticated film culture beyond the mainstream and to strengthen their media competence in a world dominated by images. Since 2020, there has been a year-round ZFF for Kids programme consisting of workshops and cinema screenings.
ZFF Series At the 10th Zurich Film Festival in 2014, a section was introduced in which TV series are shown. Until the 13th edition, this was called "ZFF TVision" and was renamed "ZFF Series" in 2018. With the renaming, a separate small competition was started, which was held until 2020. Since 2022 series are no longer shown in a separate section.
Guest of honour and Lifetime Achievement Awards A Tribute to...
The A Tribute to... Award (formerly Retrospektive) honours filmmaking personalities who have had a significant influence on film history. The award winners receive the prize in person in Zürich and usually take part as speakers at the ZFF Masters, where they share their experiences and knowledge with the participants. YearNameAwardRef2026Martin McDonagh2025Noah BaumbachA Tribute to... Award2024Edward Berger2023Todd Haynes2022Luca Guadagnino2021Paolo Sorrentino2020Maïwenn2019Roland Emmerich2018Wim Wenders2017Rob Reiner2016Olivier Assayas2015Mike Leigh2014Claire Denis2013Michael Haneke2012Tom Tykwer2011Paul Haggis2010Miloš Forman2009Roman Polański2008Costa-Gavras2007Oliver Stone2006Stephen Frears2005Rainer Werner FassbinderRetrospektive
Golden Icon Award In 2008, the Golden Icon Award was presented for the first time. It's an award that honours the lifetime achievement of an actor or actress. This award goes to a person who has become the icon of an entire generation and whose performance and cinematic work has become unforgettable. Previous award winners include: YearName2026Julianne Moore2025Colin Farrell2024Kate Winslet2023Jessica Chastain2022Sir Ben Kingsley2021Sharon Stone2020Juliette Binoche2019Cate Blanchett2018Judi Dench2017Glenn Close2016Hugh Grant2015Arnold Schwarzenegger2014Diane Keaton2013Hugh Jackman2012Richard Gere2011Sean Penn2010Michael Douglas2009Morgan Freeman2008Sylvester Stallone
Career and Lifetime Achievement Awards The Career Achievement Award is presented to a personality who has distinguished himself or herself in the field of production, directing or interdisciplinarity. The award winners are honoured with a Golden Eye Award. The Lifetime Achievement Award honours the life and work of personalities from various fields who have particularly enriched and shaped filmmaking and film history. YearNameAward2026 Glen Basner Game Changer Award Richard Linklater, Gabriel Yared, DCM Career Achievement Award John Turturro, Tom Hiddleston, Naomi Watts, Luna Wedler, Leïla Bekhti Golden Eye for most significant performer of his generation2025 Russell Crowe Lifetime Achievement Award Anne Walser Career Achievement Award Claire Foy Golden Eye for decades-long creative work2024Emil SteinbergerLifetime Achievement AwardHoward ShoreCareer Achievement AwardPamela Anderson, Alicia Vikander, Jude LawGolden Eye Award2023Mads Mikkelsen, Diane KrugerGolden Eye AwardVolker Bertelmann, Michel MerktCareer Achievement Award2022Eddie Redmayne, Charlotte GainsbourgGolden Eye AwardRachel PortmanCareer Achievement Award2021Mychael DannaPaul SchraderLifetime Achievement AwardAndrey MordovskyGolden Eye Award2020Iris Berben, Til SchweigerGolden Eye AwardRolf LyssyCareer Achievement Award2019Kristen StewartGolden Eye Award2018Donald SutherlandLifetime Achievement Award2017Aaron SorkinCareer Achievement AwardAndrew Garfield, Jake GyllenhaalGolden Eye Award2016Marcel HoehnLifetime Achievement AwardLorenzo di BonaventuraCareer Achievement Award2015Armin Mueller-StahlLifetime Achievement AwardSteve Golin, Liam HemsworthCareer Achievement Award, Golden Eye Award: The New A-Lister2014Michael ShambergCareer Achievement AwardHans Zimmer, John MalkovichLifetime Achievement Award, Golden Eye Award2013Tim Bevan, Eric FellnerCareer Achievement AwardHarrison FordLifetime Achievement Award2012Jerry WeintraubCareer Achievement AwardJohn Travolta, Helen HuntLifetime Achievement Award, Golden Eye Award2011Alejandro González IñárrituCareer Achievement Award2010––2009Michael KeatonLifetime Achievement Award
Awards and jury Golden Eye: In each category, a separate, internationally composed jury awards a Golden Eye for the best film. The prize is worth CHF 25,000 (international feature and documentary film competition) or CHF 20,000 (focus). In addition, the winning films will receive promotional measures for distribution in Switzerland.