San Gottardo

by Villi Hermann

SAN GOTTARDO parallels the two great tunnels of the Gotthard massif: the excavation of the railway tunnel (1872-1882) and the excavation of the motorway tunnel (1969-1976). It is therefore a film about emigration and the displacement of the working force. The film shows us a part of Swiss history told through Alfred Escher and Louis Favre. The film highlights historical facts such as the Gotthard workers' strike which was violently repressed by the Swiss militia. The film ends with a synthetic picture in which the historical reconstruction of the inauguration of the Alfred Escher monument is integrated into the bottom of Zurich's Bahnhofstrasse

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DATA SHEET

Orginal title:

San Gottardo

Year:

1977

Length (min.):

90'

Original language:

Italiano / Deutsch / Français

Subtitles:

Italiano / Deutsch / Français

Production:

Villi Hermann

Co-Producers:

DRS / ZDF

Distributors:

Filmcoopi Zürich, Imagofilm Lugano

With the support of:

Dipartimento federale dell'interno
Seconda rete della televisione tedesca (ZDF) Televisione svizzera SSR
Cantoni Ticino, Berna e Uri
Migros
Unione sindacale svizzera

Prizes
(selection):

Locarno Film Festival: Premio Speciale della Giuria Pardo d'argento.
Sorrento: Premio De Sica

Festivals
(selection):

Cannes (L'air du Temps)
Locarno Festival
International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg
Solothurner Filmtage

Official website:

Imagofilm Lugano

Restoration / digitization:

Cinémathèque suisse

CONTACT

Imagofilm Lugano

SYNOPSIS

SAN GOTTARDO is first and foremost a film about emigration, the exodus brought about by the construction of the two tunnels – the railway tunnel (1872-1882) and the road tunnel (1969-1976). People migrated from one country to another, from one civilization to another, and different social mores and customs were confronted with one another.
The film takes place between the unveiling of two monuments: it begins with the unveiling of the monument dedicated to the tunnel workers in Airolo, and it ends with the unveiling of the Escher monument on the Zurich Bahnhofstrasse. In between the two unveiling, the film depicts the essence of that which lay behind the veiling cloth.

LOCATION

Bellinzona, Biasca and surroundings

COLLECTIONS

Cinémathèque suisse

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CAST & CREW

Direction:

Villi Hermann

Film script:

Villi Hermann, Eve Martin, André Puig, Giovanni Orelli, Peter Zeindler

Cast:

Hans-Dieter Zeidler, Maurice Aufair, Didier Flamand, Roger Jendly, Ingold Wildenauer, Mathias Gnädinger, Dimitri, Giairo Daghini, Cito Steiger, Norbert Schwientek, Alex Freihart, Klaus-Henner Russius, Klaus Knuth, Jürgen Cziesla

Director of photography:

Renato Berta, Hans Stürm

Scenography:

Bernhard Sauter

Sound:

Luc Yersin

Editing:

Elisabeth Waelchli, Rainer Trinkler

Music:

Teatro Panzini Zirkus

Producers:

Villi Hermann, Robert Boner

HIGHLIGHTS

Restored by Cinémathèque suisse in the presence of the director Villi Hermann and the participation of the director of photography Renato Berta, San Gottardo is important for several reasons. On the one hand because it is the first film from Ticino to win the Pardo d’Argento at the Locarno Festival. On the other, because it is part of a long series of films about the Gotthard (see link below), as a gateway or as a frontier, and about the various tunnels that mark the history of Europe, from South to North and vice versa. Villi Hermann's film is the very symbol of this historical and social importance, going far beyond Swiss history.

Frédéric Maire, Director Cinémathèque Suisse