Peter Liechti (8 January 1951 – 4 April 2014) was a

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

movie director. He directed over 100 Swiss-

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movies. He was nominated for many awards. Most of his movies were shown at the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

(BIFF) and was awarded an honorary award at the BIFF in 2013. After graduating from high school Liechti initially began studying medicine. He earned a diploma as an art teacher from the

Zurich University of the Arts Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK, ) has approximately 2,500 students, which makes it the largest arts university in Switzerland. The university was established in 2007, following the merger between Zurich's School of Art and Design (HGKZ) and ...

and also studied

art history Art history is the study of Work of art, artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Tradit ...

at the University of Zurich. From 1981 to 1982 Liechti lived on

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where he worked as a painted and writer. In the early 1980s he began experimenting with filmmaking, and in 1985 he was one of the co-founders of the arthouse cinema KinoK in his hometown of St. Gallen. In 1986 Liechti began working as a freelance screenwriter, director, cameraman and producer on a variety of

arthouse An art film, arthouse film, or specialty film is an independent film aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made prima ...

productions. His filmography included only one feature film (''Martha's Garden'', 1997) as most of his works were documentaries, essays, and experimental films. Over the course of his career he made a number of films in collaboration with well-known musicians and artists such as

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and

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. From 1988 to 1995 Liechti was also member of the film group Eighties Film in Zürich. Liechti died in 2014 at the age of 63 from cancer he had suffered for years.

Selected filmography

*1997: ''Martha's Garden'' *2003: ''Lucky Jack: Three Attempts to Stop Smoking'' *2004: ''Namibia Crossings'' *2006: ''Hardcore Chambermusic'' *2007: ''Sweeping Addis'' *2009: ''The Sound of Insects: Record of a Mummy'' *2013: ''Father's Garden: The Love of My Parents''

Awards

* 2005: Nomination for

Swiss Film Award The Swiss Film Awards (, , , ; also known as the Swiss Film Prize) are national film awards awarded in several categories of Switzerland, first given out in 1998. History Between 1998 and 2008 the prize was given during the Solothurn Film Fest ...

for Best Documentary for ''Namibia Crossings'' * 2009:

European Film Award for Best Documentary The European Film Award for Best Documentary or Prix Arte has been awarded annually since 1989 by the European Film Academy. Special Mentions were presented alongside the winner of the award until 1993, since 1999 a set of nominees are presented ...

for ''The Sound of Insects: Record of a Mummy'' * 2010: Culture Prize of the City of St. Gallen * 2014:

for Best Documentary for ''Father's Garden: The Love of My Parents''

References

External links

* 1951 births 2014 deaths European Film Awards winners (people) Swiss film directors People from St. Gallen (city) Deaths from cancer in Switzerland {{Switzerland-bio-stub