The Sparrow in the Chimney

Der Spatz im Kamin

TIFF65: Greek Premiere
The family home has always been a perfect setting for exploring countless intriguing stories in all forms of fiction, and it serves just as well in The Sparrow in the Chimney, the new film by Ramon and Silvan Zürcher, following their equally meticulous The Girl and the Spider. At the core—or perhaps in the living room—of their new film are two estranged sisters who reunite at their childhood home, where one now lives with her family. As buried emotions rise to the surface, old wounds lead to conflicts against the backdrop of an idyllic landscape. In this thoughtful exploration of the ties that bind us and the wounds that tear us apart, the Zürcher brothers reflect on the idea that something must die for something new to be born. Weaving a tapestry of family dynamics and blood ties, the film seamlessly shifts between painful truths and moments of deep tenderness, delivering a cinematic experience as layered and captivating as life itself.
Screening Schedule

No physical screenings scheduled.


Direction: Ramon Zürcher
Script: Ramon Zürcher
Cinematography: Alex Hasskerl
Editing: Ramon Zürcher
Sound: Balthasar Jucker, Peter Von Siebenthal, Ramon Zürcher
Music: Balz Bachmann
Actors: Maren Eggert, Britta Hammelstein, Luise Heyer, Andreas Döhler, Milian Zerzawy, Lea Zoe Voss, Paula Schindler, Ilja Bultmann, Luana Greco
Production: Zürcher Film
Producers: Silvan Zürcher
Co-production: SRF Swiss Radio and Television, SRG SSR
Costumes: Linda Harper
Make Up: Nicole Zingg
Format: DCP
Color: Color
Production Country: Switzerland
Production Year: 2024
Duration: 117'
Contact: Cercamon

Ramon Zürcher

Ramon Zürcher (1982) is a Swiss screenwriter and film director. From 2002 to 2005, he completed a Visual Arts degree at the Bern Academy of the Arts (HKB). In 2005, he was awarded the Kiefer Hablitzel Prize for his art videos. Subsequently, from 2006 to 2014, he studies Film Directing at the German Film and Television Academy Berlin (DFFB). His first feature film The Strange Little Cat premiers at the Berlinale Forum in 2013 and is selected at over 80 festivals (incl. Toronto, Cannes, New Directors/New Films, Mar del Plata), winning numerous awards (incl. CPH:PIX – Main prize, IFF Minsk - Best Debut, IFF Antalya – Film Critics’ Prize, Viennale - Audience Jury Award). His second feature film The Girl and the Spider also premiers at the Berlinale, where it was awarded the prize for Best Director and the FIPRESCI prize of the section Encounters, followed by awards for Best Screenplay and Best Editing at the IFF Mar del Plata and the Preis der Deutschen Filmkritik, the Grand Prix at the New Holland Island IFF and a Bern Film Prize. In the Cahiers du Cinéma the film ranks 8th on the 2021 Best of the Year list. The Sparrow in the Chimney is his third feature film. He is currently writing the youth drama The Young Woman With the Crowbar.

Filmography

2013 The Strange Little Cat
2021 The Girl and the Spider
2024 The Sparrow in the Chimney