filmworks
DIRECTOR - WRITER - CINEMATOGRAPHER
Switzerland 2013 · DCP · Color · 85' · French/English
Director Producer: Lorenz Merz
Cast: Lolita Chammah
Cinematography & Editing: Lorenz Merz
Production Company: 8horses
Zoé tries to escape herself. She travels north, drifting through faceless cities and gas stations, and finds herself on a ferryboat where a mysterious woman suddenly disappears. In the winter coat of a stranger, Zoé, the invisible passenger, reaches the other side of the Channel.
AWARDS
Grand Prix · Festival Internacional de Cine de Valencia 2014
Jury Award · Detour Festival del cinema di viaggio 2014
Nomination · Swiss Film Award Best Cinematography 2014
Nomination · Spirit Of The Festival Award 59th Cork IFF 2014
Nomination · German Independence Award Oldenburg 2014
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SOUL OF A BEAST (visit website)
Switzerland 2021 · DCI 1:1.33 · Color · 110min · 5.1 · Swiss-German/French
Producer · Director · Writer · Cinematography: Lorenz Merz
Cast: Ella Rumpf · Pablo Caprez · Luna Wedler · Lolita Chammah
Art Blacca · Tonatiuh Radzi · Angelique La Douce
WORLD PREMIERE
74° Locarno International Film Festival / Official Competition 2021
AWARDS
8 Record Nominations · Swiss Film Awards 2022
Best Director · Critic Award · Best Actor · Max Ophüls Prize 2022
Main Award Ecumenical Jury 2021 74° Locarno IFF 2021
Production Company: Hesse Film · in association with 8horses
World Sales: www.picturetree-international.com
CH-Distributer: www.ascot-elite.ch
TRAILER 20th International Short Film Festival Winterthur
Producer · Director · Writer · Cinematography: Lorenz Merz
Nomination EDI 2016 - Best Swiss Commercial TV & Cinema
CHERRY PIE
Switzerland 2014 · DCP · Color · 85' · French/Russian/English
Producer · Director · Writer · Cinematography: Lorenz Merz
Cast: Lolita Chammah
Production: 8horses
Sales: Film Republic
WORLD PREMIERE
67° Locarno International Film Festival 2013
AWARDS
Grand Prix · Festival Internacional de Cine de Valencia 2014
Jury Award · Detour Festival del cinema di viaggio Padova 2014
Nomination · Swiss Film Award Best Cinematography 2014
ONE DAY AND NOTHING
Switzerland 2008 · 35mm · B/W · 20’ · Spanish · Fiction
Director · Writer · Producer: Lorenz Merz
Cinematography: Lorenz Merz & Gabriel Sandru
Production: ZHdK University of the Arts Zurich
WORLD PREMIERE
61. Festival del film Locarno 2008
AWARDS
Swiss Film Award · Best Swiss Short Film 2009
Pardino d'argento · 61. Festival del film Locarno 2008
Grand Prix · European Competition Festival du Film de Vendôme 2009
Youth Jury Prize · European Competition Festival du Film de Vendôme 2009
Cinematography Award · Munich International Film Festival 2008
Public Award · University of the Arts Zurich 2008
WAR
Switzerland 2014 · DCP · 111min · Color · CH-German
Cinematography: Lorenz Merz (Laszlo Ovlinsky)
Director: Simon Jaquemet
Producer: Hugofilm
Sales: Picture Tree International
WORLD PREMIERE
62. Festival internacional de Cine San Sebastian 2014
AWARDS
Swiss Film Award · Best Cinematography 2015
Max Ophüls Preis · Filmfestival Max Ophüls Preis 2015
Best Feature · Bolzano International Film Festival 2015
Jury Prize · Marrakech International Film Festival 2014
MILLIONS CAN WALK
Switzerland 2014 · DCP · Color · 88’ · Hindi/English · Doc
Cinematography: Lorenz Merz (Laszlo Ovlinsky)
Director: Christoph Schaub · Kamal Musale
Producer: Reck Filmproduction
Sales: CAT&Docs
WORLD PREMIERE
SUMMER GAMES
Switzerland 2011 · 35mm · Color · 101 · Italian
Cinematography: Lorenz Merz (Laszlo Ovlinsky)
Director: Rolando Colla
Producer: Peacock Film
Sales: Rezo Film
WORLD PREMIERE
68. Venice International Film Festival 2011
AWARDS
Swiss Film Award «Quartz» · Best Cinematography 2012
Zurich Film Award · Best Film & Best Cinematography 2011
Nomination · Best Cinematography Debut Cameraimage 2012
Swiss Film Award «Quartz» · Best Fiction Film 2012
Swiss Film Award «Quartz» · Best Screenplay 2012
OFFICIAL SWISS ENTRY 2012
84TH ACADEMY AWARDS · BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
GOODNIGHT NOBODY
Switzerland 2010 · 35mm · Color · 83’ · Documentary
Cinematography: Nikolai von Graevenitz · Lorenz Merz
Director: Jacqueline Zünd
Producer: Docmine Productions
WORLD PREMIERE
Nyon, Visions du Réel 2010
AWARDS
Cinematography Award · Doc Against Gravity FF Warsaw 2011
Swiss Film Award «Quartz» · Best Film Score 2011
Grand Jury Award · Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival 2011
Best Film Newcomer · Nyon Visions du Réel 2010
Zurich Film Award 2010
CLOSED SEASON · Switzerland 2009 · 35mm · Color · 20’ · CH-German
Cinematography: Lorenz Merz (Laszlo Ovlinsky)
Director: Irene Ledermann
Producer: ZHdK University of the Arts Zurich
WORLD PREMIERE
62. Festival del film Locarno 2009
AWARDS
Best Swiss Camera 2009 · ISFF Winterthur
Nomination · Best Cinematography Camerimage 2010
Best Shortfilm · Filmfestival Max Ophüls Preis 2010
Grand Prix · Krakow International Film Festival Etudia 2009
Best Shortfilm · 15° Festival Cinéma Tous Ecrans Genève 2009
Nomination · Swiss Film Award «Quartz» 2010
WHOIMAN one that got away
100min Italy · Senegal 2024 (in development)
Director · Writer · Producer: Lorenz Merz · Producer · Michela Pini · Production Company: 8horses
Lorenz Merz, born 1981 in Zurich from swiss-american parents. After formation in music, painting and photography he studied film at University of the Arts Zurich and Universidad del Cine Buenos Aires. His graduate short One Day and Nothing 2008 won several awards, including the Silver Leopard at the 61st Locarno IFF and the swiss film award 2009 - best director.
His improvised road movie Cherry Pie 2013 (IFF Locarno, Camerimage, Wroclaw, Rotterdam, Valencia, Cork..) won many international awards and was nominated for best cinematography at the swiss film awards 2014.
His latest feature Soul Of A Beast 2021 (74°Locarno IFF, Miami IFF, Atlanta IFF, Cleveland IFF, Moscow IFF, Buenos Aires IFF, Shanghai IFF...) won several awards and broke the record with 8 nominations including best picture at the Swiss Film Award 2022 - from where it won 4 Awards (Best Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Music, Best Production Design).
With his work as cinematographer he was represented several times at Camerimage (worlds greatest festival dedicated to the art of cinematography). Among other awards he won three times the swiss film award - best cinematography - for Summer Games 2011by Rolando Colla (IFF Venice/Toronto 2011, official swiss entry - 84th Academy Awards 2012), War 2014 by Simon Jaquemet (IFF San Sebastian/Karlovy Vary 2014) and for his own film Soul of a Beast 2022 .
In 2013, he and fellow filmmakers founded the Zurich based production company 8horses. He was part of IFF Jury's (Locarno IFF, Neuchatel Fantastic IFF) and is member of the EFA European Film Academy, the SFA Swiss Film Academy and the SCS Swiss Cinematographer’s Society. Father of two sons, lives and works in Paris and Zurich.
He currently works on new screenplay Who/Man (about the fastest woman in the world and a car rally in the depths of the African continent)