Lausanne Underground Film and Music Festival

The Lausanne Underground Film and Music Festival, or LUFF, is a film festival and music festival devoted to underground culture. It is held each year in Lausanne, Switzerland. It began with the formation of the LUFF Association For The Promotion of Independent Cinema. The festival thus rests on a not-for-profit group with an artistic mission. The primary goal of the LUFF is to present films that are generally unknown to the mainstream public, often experimental films. Films are screened during the day and evening, followed by live events featuring underground musicians at night. Three prizes (for a total amount of 8000 Swiss francs in 2006) are awarded by the festival, in order to support the filmmakers in creating their art. The budget of the festival is 300.000 Swiss francs (200,000 euros).

History of the LUFF

Originally called "Underground Nights", the festival drew its inspiration from the New York Underground Film Festival. Through its initial, formative years, though, the LUFF developed its own unique program. Starting in its first year with a small screening room that could seat only 30 people, the festival managed to gather more than 1,000 spectators in 2000. In 2002, after a one-year hiatus, the festival moved to Lausanne with the support of fr iconCinémathèque suisse, for the first official edition of the "Lausanne Underground Film and Music Festival," drawing 4,000 spectators. The festival organizers expect 8,000 spectators in 2005. By programming an international selection while still paying homage to great names of the underground like Nick Zedd, John Waters, Lloyd Kaufman, Ian Kerkhof, Kenneth Anger and the Kuchar brothers; and by organizing musical events featuring such artists as Jimi Tenor, Hanin Elias, Techno Animal, Chicks on Speed, Rhys Chatam, Pansonic and Alan Vega, the LUFF programming now stretches beyond the Swiss borders.

The Fifth Edition

The fifth edition of the LUFF (October 11-15, 2006) featured a look at Viennese Actionism, a retrospective on Jonas Mekas, a program titled "sXprmntl" selected by Roland Lethem with films by Thierry Zéno, Philippe Caufriez, Patrice Bauduinet, and Patrick Hella, as well as a series by Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Musical events included Genesis P-Orridge, Lydia Lunch, John Duncan, The Haters, Gabi Delgado, Kid 606, Spectre, and more.

Awards

* 2006 - Best Feature: Threat by Matt Pizzolo and Katie Nisa
* 2006 - Best Short Film: Memory Lapse by Scott Amos
* 2006 - Best Experimental Film: Emerge (film) by Stephane Broc

The Fourth Edition

Awards

* 2005 - Best Feature: Die You Zombie bastards ! by Caleb Emerson
* 2005 - Best Short Film: Clean by Geoffrey Engelbrecht
* 2005 - Best Experimental Film: Grau by Robert Seidl and Fiddler's Green by Jean-Claude Campell and Marco Bowald

ee also

* New York Underground Film Festival

*fr iconCategory:Festival de cinéma en Suisse
*fr iconCategory:Cinéma expérimental
*fr iconCategory:Film underground
*fr iconCategory:Lausanne