The 70th Locarno Film Festival is coming to a close. For ten days, the compact city in Italian-speaking Switzerland has been transformed into a place of pilgrimage for film-lovers, actors and directors. Here are some of the highlights. 

Every day the international festival lures visitors into cinemas or the Piazza Grande, the heart of the festival. Every summer Switzerland and the world meet – whether it’s on screen or over drinks. 

In this anniversary year several innovations have been introduced. Four new cinema halls were opened, three of which are in “PalaCinema”, a converted school with a total of 800 seats. The “GranRex”, formerly “Ex*Rex”, has also been renovated. Both cinemas plan to be open to the public for the other 355 days of the year. 

The new section “Locarno Kids” is aimed at younger visitors, with films shown on two mornings, for example the animation Zombillenium. 

The Locarno Film Festivalexternal link was founded in 1946 and quickly established a reputation as a window for independent cinema. It has always offered a stage to some of the most popular actors in the world and helped well-known directors get their breakthrough.