Sophie Bourdon (Pic: Nikita Thévoz)
Sophie Bourdon, previous deputy director of Locarno Pro, joins Visions du Réel as head of VdR Industry on July 1 2022 where she will further strengthen and develop the Festival’s ever-growing professional platform. She succeeds Madeline Robert, who will remain affiliated with the Festival in other capacities.
“The growing success of VdR-Industry is the fruit of the equally visionary and competent commitment of my predecessors Madeline Robert and Gudula Meinzolt,” comments Bourdon. “It is a great honour to step into their shoes and contribute to support independent filmmaking in all its diversity. I thank the two directors of Visions du Réel for the trust they have placed in me.”
Emilie Bujès, Artistic Director, and Martine Chalverat, Administrative and Operational Director of Visions du Réel, add: “Year after year, VdR-Industry sets the stage for the success of film projects, discusses the most pressing concerns of the film industry and facilitates important contacts. Sophie Bourdon comes with the qualities and the network to lead VdR-Industry into the future.”
Sophie Bourdon combines many years of experience and diverse expertise in the European and international film industry. Currently, she heads and develops the Locarno Film Festival’s Open Doors programs, which include a co-production platform, numerous talent development activities, and online formats for training and networking. In this capacity, Bourdon works with institutional and private partners in Switzerland, Europe, South America, Southeast Asia, South Asia or North Africa, among others.
As a freelance consultant, Bourdon serves the San Sebastian International Film Festival and the Cannes Film Festival market, and worked with FOCAL on European training programs, namely the Digital Production Challenge. In 2020, she was appointed Deputy Director of Locarno Pro.
Before joining the Locarno Film Festival and moving to Switzerland in 2011, she ran the Ateliers du Cinéma Européen (ACE) for 10 years and worked as an international salesperson for MK2, among others, representing the works of filmmakers such as Michael Haneke, Krzysztof Kieslowski, Abbas Kiarostami, Mohsen and Samira Makhmalbaf or Jonathan Nossiter.
Bourdon is a member of the European Film Academy and a founding member of Bridging the Dragon (Europe/China). She regularly participates in juries and selection committees, namely in the framework of project development or co-production platforms such as TorinoFilmLab, Cannes Market, Rencontres de Coproduction Francophones (RCF), Southeast Asia Fiction Film Lab (SEAFIC, Thailand) or the Asian Film School (AFIS, Busan, South Korea).
