The 2026 documentary film workshop for 1st year students was lead by swiss director Marie-Eve Hildbrand.
Studio project (2026) by Zakary Al Samman, Eva Baumgartner, Louise Bercher, Fatlum Berisha, Jean Coutau, Lucie Kheloui, Zen Marachly, Max Rosenstiehl, Mia Widmer
Head of workshop: Marie-Eve Hildbrand
"What is precious
What inspires
What awakens me"
"I shared this short quote and an extract from the manifesto CRÉER C’EST RÉSISTER (To Create Is to Resist), written in 2024 by the clown Gilles Defacque, to spark reflection and boldness among the first-year students, guiding them for around 17 days through this astonishing creative process unique to the field known as documentary filmmaking.
As with every workshop – and having experienced it myself when I was a trainee filmmaker with my own tutors – I am always deeply moved by that moment when we watch the first rushes together and a perspective emerges, sometimes still blurred, sometimes already very sharp, on reality and the powerful, intangible qualities it holds.”
Marie-Eve Hildbrand, director
• Zakary Al Samman , For the thrill of it, 15'
• Eva Baumgartner , Where My Body Grows, 13'
• Louise Bercher , Hold Me Clothes, 10'
• Fatlum Berisha , Identitary origin, 11'
• Jean Coutau , Headless wordless, 11'
• Thomas Duvanel , Symbiosis, 16'
• Lucie Kheloui , Bye Bye Modern Love, 13'
• Zen Marachly , History of, 9'
• Max Rosenstiehl , The desire of others, 8'
• Mia Widmer , Come on, let's love each other, 4'
1/10
BA PHOTOGRAPHY
with Rineke Dijkstra
What is good portrait? What technique do you choose? What kind of light do you use? Daylight or flash? What location or backdrop do you choose for? How do you choose your subject? How do you approach someone you don’t know? In this workshop, the students have explored what makes a good portrait and which tools you can use to create one.
BA FILM STUDIES
with Verena Paravel
The 2026 documentary film workshop for 2nd year students was lead by french director and visual anthropologist Verena Paravel.
BA GRAPHIC DESIGN
by Arnaud Wenger
Our perception of climate change depends on what we read. How You Read, How You Know is an investigation into the invisible architecture of information. When a wildfire burns, the facts are the same: the hectares, the wind, the displaced lives. But the story told about it never quite is. It shifts depending on who writes, from where, and for whom. This project analyzes the media coverage of two wildfires in 2025: the Los Angeles wildfires in January, and the Corbières wildfires, in the south of France, in August.
BA GRAPHIC DESIGN
by Joanna Metz
Galerie Nationale offers a glimpse of the young photographic scene in Dakar. In collaboration with a team of Senegalese photographers, the artist organised the exhibition Li Nu Boole, What connects us, which culminated in an opening in May, 2026 at the National Gallery in Dakar. This book documents the preparation of the event, the environment, the artists and their artworks, as well as the spectators taking part as actors during the opening. Through conversations and texts, the artists share their journeys, their visions of what connects us, as well as their reactions to the project. Throughout this project, the artist took on the roles of artistic director, curator, and graphic designer, while living an artistic and human experience in the country of her childhood.
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.