The routine life of Stéphanie, a support worker, ill at ease with herself, but totally dedicated to her work, is overturned by her experience with Tamara, a “white trash Lolita” who is at war with the entire world.
Diploma project (2013) by Kaspar Schiltknecht
Fiction / 19min
Synopsis
A support worker in a hostel for young women at risk, Stéphanie’s whole life revolves round her work. Her commitment is shaken when Tamara, a 16 year old runaway, is brought back by the police. Trying to deal with the institution’s tight surveillance and hostility of the other girls, Tamara tries to make friends with Stéphanie, who becomes increasingly unsettled by the girl’s desire for closeness.
Commentaire
Bonne Espérance tells with intelligence and finesse the story of the meeting of two women that everything should have opposed. Kaspar Schiltknecht succeeds, with gentleness and grace, in filming the ages, the states of the body, the desires for freedom and guilt, the beauty and the unattractive, and reveals a young actress with a confounding naturalness who seduces her educator almost in spite of herself.
Frédéric Mermoud / Director
BA PHOTOGRAPHY
with Natacha Lesueur
“What is clearly conceived can be clearly expressed, and the words to say it come easily.” Nicholas Boileau, *L’art poétique*. As students embark on their final year of study at ECAL, with their interests and methods taking shape, this final project offers an opportunity to challenge their own rules, established practices and influences, to refuse to settle for the status quo and to take risks.
BA PHOTOGRAPHY
with Philippe Jarrigeon
Drawing on Moncler’s Alpine heritage, its timeless style, and its technical mastery, the ECAL Bachelor Photography students developed their own interpretation of the brand’s visual language, blending documentary photography with staged scenes, and merging reality with fiction, under the artistic direction of French photographer Philippe Jarrigeon. As part of Paris Photo 2025, the students’ work was showcased at the Moncler boutique on the Champs-Élysées.
BA MEDIA & INTERACTION DESIGN
with Harry Bloch
Websites developed over the course of a semester based on books chosen by students, which they adapted into web experiences as part of Harry Bloch's Screen Design course, second year of the Bachelor's degree in Visual Communication.
BA PHOTOGRAPHY
with Julien Bourdeille
Événement Lumineux Through an in-depth exploration of light as a narrative and sensory medium, first-year students created a short film on the theme “Luminous Event.” This project allows them to learn how to manage a complete audiovisual project while mastering the tools of filming, framing, and camera movement.
BA GRAPHIC DESIGN
by Dorian Pangallo
In an era where crises follow one another and justify a state of permanent exception, Sublime Democracy is a critical multimedia campaign portraying democracies stripped of their foundations, yet upheld by persistent symbols sustaining the illusion. Designed as a contemporary fable, the work draws on precise presidential speeches and polished visuals, integrating AI as the engine of a critical process where falsehood becomes language. By playing with the codes of power, it questions our habituation to fear, authority, and dominant narratives.