Since its emergence in the 1920s with the now-iconic film Histoire de Monsieur Vieux Bois [The Adventures of Mr Obadiah Oldbuck (Lortac & Cavé, 1921)], created using the paper cut-out technique and now digitally restored by the Cinémathèque suisse, Swiss animation has had a long history punctuated by periods of neglect and marginalisation (particularly prior to the 1960s) and spells of increased production (especially in the field of advertising and with the advent of television), before receiving international acclaim in the 2000s, culminating in the phenomenal success of the Oscar-nominated Ma vie de Courgette [My Life as a Courgette (Claude Barras, 2016)] and the selection of Switzerland as the guest of honour at the 2022 Annecy International Animation Film Festival.
From the discovery and preservation of the reels of Histoire de Monsieur Vieux Bois in the 1970s to making its collections available for university projects supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) from 2010 to 2020, the Cinémathèque suisse has greatly contributed to the rise of Swiss animation. Furthermore, the Groupement suisse du film d’animation [Swiss Association of Animated Films (GSFA)] – founded in 1968 in Fribourg by Bruno Edera, Nag and Gisèle Ansorge, Georges Schwizgebel, Claude Luyet and Daniel Suter with the aim of bringing together Swiss animation professionals and promoting creation – recently deposited its archives at the Cinémathèque suisse (Fonds CSL 206). This section will only give a snapshot of the animation treasures in our collections.
Fonds CSL 017 – Robi Engler (storyboards, illustrations, cels, sets, characters, letters, and production files) was stored in the filmmaker/animator’s studio in Jouxtens-Mézery (VD), near Lausanne. In preparation for the closure of his studio, Engler deposited his archives and equipment at the Cinémathèque suisse. He has also participated in the collection’s evaluation and curation with regular visits to the Penthaz Research and Archiving Centre between 2018 and 2023.
The documents and creations of the collections of Ernest (CSL 035) and Gisèle (CSL 094) Ansorge were stored at the couple’s residence in Étagnières and by Sylvain Pichon, Gisèle’s nephew, in Échallens. Ernest “Nag” Ansorge decided to deposit his archives (documents, films, photographs, objects, equipment) as well as Gisèle Ansorge’s creations at the Cinémathèque suisse, but this was only partially completed before his death. In total, four transfers were made between June 2011 and December 2014 by Ernest Ansorge and Sylvain Pichon. These two collections and Fonds CSL 166 – Papiers Dominique Delachaux-Lambert will be showcased at a major exhibition on sand animation co-organised by the Cinémathèque suisse and the Musée Alexis Forel in 2024–2025.
Edmond Liechti retired in the 1990s – a time when digital advancements were revolutionising animation techniques. In March 2015, he deposited his films at the Cinémathèque suisse, followed by his paper archives in April 2016. A further deposit was made by Christian and Jean-Philippe Liechti on 29 June 2021 to complete Fonds CSL 101 – Edmond Liechti.
Fonds CSL 127 – Collection Ma Vie de Courgette, which includes the script, illustrations (characters and sets), storyboard, production files, flyers, as well as the film’s puppets, accessories and sets, was deposited at the Cinémathèque suisse on 24 August 2017 at the request of Claude Barras and Rita Productions.
Fonds CSL 152 holds documents relating to the activities of Samuel and Frédéric Guillaume in the field of animation, particularly through the work of their company Cinémagination. The feature film Max & Co (2007) is the most substantial and the most documented production in this collection, which was originally stored at the Guillaume brothers’ property in Villars-sur-Glâne (Fribourg). The collection was deposited at the Cinémathèque suisse on 12 November 2019.
The objects and documents that make up Fonds CSL 157 – Jean Zipper (cels, storyboards, illustrations, layers, cut-outs, film records, production files) were previously stored at the illustrator/animator’s studio in Meilen. The paper documents were deposited at the Cinémathèque suisse by Zipper himself via the Dokumentationsstelle Zürich on 6 November 2015 and the film collection arrived directly at Penthaz Research and Archiving Centre on 2 December 2015.