The Lausanne Underground Film and Music Festival (LUFF) is a film festival and music festival devoted to underground film and music. It is held each year in Lausanne, Switzerland. The festival is organized by a non-profit organization (APCI – Association pour la Promotion de la Culture Indépendante). The organization's goals are to promote independent artistic projects and creations and to make those projects accessible to a large public. The primary goal of the Lausanne Underground Film & Music Festival is to present films and music that largely exist outside the mainstream and profit driven production and distribution circuits. The cinematic section presents mainly films with an experimental character and/or films that challenge the spectator's viewing habits. Films are screened during the day and evening, followed by live music events featuring underground artists at night. Money prizes are awarded by the festival for the films selected in the international competition, in order to support the filmmakers in creating their art. The musical program of the festival proposes sonar experimentations of all kind.
During the four concert nights of the festival week, an average of twenty international and Swiss musicians and groups play in the Salle des Fêtes of the Casino de Montbenon, the neuralgic center of the festival. In 2012 the festival has considerably enlarged its "off" program (a wide artistic offer free of charge, evolving in parallel to the official program) which continues to grow ever since and participates largely to the festive and open character of the event.During the five days of the festival, its activities also expand to local venues such as the rock club Le Romandie, the independent movie theater Le Zinéma, the cultural venue La Datcha, the auditorium of the local music school EJMA as well as the book store and art gallery La Librairie Humus, the art gallery Standard Deluxe, the associative photo&cine laboratory "on fait du l'art !", the independent movie theater Bellevaux and use to work with the café-théâtre le Bourg and the center for contemporary art Arsenic.The annual budget of the festival is of total value about 300.000 Swiss francs (270,000 euros).
History of the festival Originally called Underground Nights, the festival drew its inspiration from the New York Underground Film Festival. Through its initial, formative years, though, the LUFF developed its own unique program. Starting in its first year with a small screening room that could seat only 30 people, the festival managed to gather more than 1,000 spectators in 2000. In 2002, after a one-year hiatus, the festival moved to Lausanne with the support of the Swiss Film Archive, for the first official edition of the Lausanne Underground Film and Music Festival, drawing 4,000 spectators. By 2013, the festival has drawn around 8000 spectators. By programming an international short and feature films competition while still paying homage to great names of the underground like Nick Zedd, John Waters, Lloyd Kaufman, Ian Kerkhof, Kenneth Anger, Jai Love and the Kuchar brothers; and by organizing musical events featuring such artists as Jimi Tenor, Hanin Elias, Techno Animal, Chicks on Speed, Rhys Chatam, Pansonic and Alan Vega, the LUFF programming now stretches beyond the Swiss borders.
Festival Editions
2023: The Twenty-Second Edition Source:
Took place from October 18 to 22, 2023, in Lausanne.
Film Awards 2023
Best Feature FIlm : Hello Dankness, Soda Jerk, Australia, 2023 Best Short Experimental Films : Birth Proof, Alex Beriault, Germany, 2022 - ex-aequo with Terrifying Holes Compilation, Katherina Aae, Germany, 2021 Best Short Fiction Film : Dva, Alexandra Karelina, Russia, 2023 Best Short Animation Film : Tony’s Dilemma, Nathan Sonenfeld, U.S.A., 2023 Best Short Documentary Film : The Lighting, Chihying Musquiqui, Taiwan, 2021 Special Mention Short Documentary Film : Speed Date, Jan Soldat, Austria, 2023
2022: The Twenty-First Edition Source:
Took place from October 19 to 23, 2022, in Lausanne.
Film Awards 2022
Best Feature Film : Jethica, Pete Ohs, U.S.A., 2022
Special Mention Feature Film: Beathing Happy, Shane Brady, U.S.A., 2022 Best Short Experimental Film: SileSilence, Jacques Perconte et Julien Desprez, France, 2022 Special Mention Short Experimental Film: Enthusiasm, OJOBOCA, Germany, 2022 Best Short Fiction Film : White Devil, Mariama Diallo, Benjamin Dickinson, U.S.A., 2021 Best Short Animation Film : Mui, Weng Chon Wong, Macao, 2021 Best Short Documentary Film : People enjoy my company, Frank Sweeney, Ireland, 2021
2021: The Twentieth Edition Source:
Took place from October 20 to 24, 2021, in Lausanne.
Film Awards 2021
Best Feature Film : Sister Tempest, Joe Badon, U.S.A., 2020 Best Short Experimental Film : Axis of Aion, Takashi Makino & Manuel Knapp, Japan/Austria, 2019 Best Short Fiction Film : Bad Hair, Oskar Lehemaa, Estonia, 2019 Special Mention Short Fiction Film : Stuffed, Theo Rhys, United Kingdom, 2021 Best Short Animation Film : Ghost Dogs, Victoria Vincent, U.S.A., 2019 Best Short Documentary Film : Just A Guy, Shoko Hars, Germany, 2020
2020: The Nineteenth Edition Source:
Took place from October 14 to 18, 2020, in Lausanne.
Film Awards 2020
Best Feature Film : Playdurizm, Gem Deger, Czech Republic, 2020 Best Short Experimental Film : Hitting My Head on the World, Anna Vasof, Austria, 2019 Best Short Fiction Film : Museum of Fleeting Wonders, Tomás Gómez Bustillo, U.S.A., 2020 Best Short Animation Film : Deep Love, Mykyta Lyskov, Ukraine, 2019 Best Short Documentary Film : Isle of Tears, Boudai12, Hong Kong, 2019
2016: The Fifteenth Edition Took place from October 19 to 23, 2016, in Lausanne.
2015: The Fourteenth Edition Held from October 14 to 18 2015, it has attracted around 13'000 spectators during the five days of film screenings and four concert nights. Among the retrospective programs one dedicated to filmmaker Jeff Perkins presented his Movies for the Blind, a series of intensive recordings of interviews with passengers in his yellow cab from 1995 to 2002.
Film Awards 2015 2015 - Best Feature Film: Felt by de Jason Banker 2015 - Best Short Fiction Film: Notre dame des hormones by Bertrand Mandico 2015 - Best Experimental Short Film: Rearranged by Ewa Górzna 2015 - Best Short Animation: Pandemonio by Valerio Spinelli 2015 - Best Short Documentary: Then Then Then by Daniel Shioler
Music line-up 2015
Wednesday Ecoute la merde Jacob Kirkegaard plays Else Marie Pade, Anti-Ensemble: Imperial Dissolution Liturgy Jim Haynes
Thursday Nicolas Collins C. Spencer Yeh Marcus Schmickler Pedestrian Deposit Mei Zhiyong Denis Rollet
Friday Neutral Katsura Mouri Menace Ruine Sissy Spacek Lumisokea
Saturday e:ch feat. JinniL Sin:Ned feat. Laurent Valdès Maria Chavez Headwar Extreme Precautions Sly & The Family Drone
2014: The Thirteenth Edition Was held from 15 to 19 October 2015.
Film Awards 2014 2014 – Best Feature Film: Buzzard by Joel Potrykus, 2014, USA 2014 – Best Short Fiction Film (ex aequo): The Voice Thief by Adan Jodorowski, 2013, CHI, FRA, USA. 2014 – Best Short Fiction Film (ex aequo): Straight to Video by Elizabeth Vazquez, 2013, USA 2014 – Best Experimental Short Film: Kudryavka Little Ball of Fur by Pikku Kippura, 2013, FIN 2014 – Best Short Animation: Wawd Ahp, Stephen Girard, 2013, USA
Music line-up 2014
Wednesday Morton Subotnick Gordon Monahan: "Speaker Swinging" Keith Fullerton Whitman & Mark Fell Cédric Dambrain
Thursday Bryan Lewis Saunders & John Duncan Tetsuo Furudate Aaron Dilloway Robert Curgenven Les Belles Noiseuses
Friday Dalglish Winter Family Mohammad Cadaver Eyes G*Park
Saturday Mario de Vega Cobra Dustbreeders & Junko Black Zenith Kuro Pipe
2013: The Twelfth Edition The twelfth edition of the festival (October 16 to 20 2013) featured a total of 98 films. Retrospective programs featured works by Japanese surrealist filmmaker Katsu Kanai, French actor-filmmaker Pierre Clémenti, French punk author, musician and filmmaker , Russian independent filmmaker , Polish filmmaker Walerian Borowczyk and Belgian filmmaker Marcel Broodthaers as well as a carte blanche program to Jello Biafra. The international film competition included five feature films and 18 short films. The music part included 24 concerts for the total of four concert nights. The program presented sets by artists such as Emptyset, Endon, The Haxan Cloak, Vomir, Kracoon, Sugar Craft, Sajjanu, Jello Biafra, Fen (Far East Network: Otomo Yoshihide, Ryu Hankil, Yuen Chee Wal, Yan Jun), Nate Young, Blackphone666, Aluk Todolo, Jason Lescalleet, JG Thirwell, Bryan Lewis Saunders, Leif Elggren, Jean-François Laporte, Evil Moisture, Smegma, Nicolas Bernier & Martin Messier, Kiko C. Esseiva and DJ Nozinja. A total of 58 artists (musicians and filmmakers) were present during the five days of the festival to present their works.
The twelfth edition of the Lausanne Underground Film & Music Festival also proposed a range of workshops, aiming to introduce spectators to new or little known artistic techniques. The five workshops were held by artists such as the South-African group Shangaan Dance, Japanese decoupage artist Kosuke Kawamura, Canadian experimental musician Jean-François Laporte, Japanese noise musician Endon and French musician and artist Andy Bolus.
The program of the festival also included an off part featuring the festival's own radio station (LUFF.FM), expositions and various artistic performances all through the five days of the festival.
Film Awards 2013
2013 – Best Feature Film: Worm by Andrew Bowser 2013 – Best Short Fiction Film: Fist of Jesus by David Munoz 2013 – Best Experimental Short Film: Autoportrait: Presto con Amore by Martin Messier
Music line-up 2013
Wednesday Nozinja Jean-François Laporte "Rust" Kiko C. Esseiva Nicolas Bernier & Martin Messier "la chambre des machines" Smegma & Kosuke Kawamura Evil Moisture Jean-François Laporte "Mantra"
Thursday Leif Elggren Bryan Lewis Saunders JG Thirlwell (Foetus):"Cholera Nocebo" Jason Lescalleet Aluk Todolo Blackphone666
Friday Nate Young FEN Jello Biafra & Ravi Shardja & Anton Mobin Sajjanu Sugarcraft
Saturday Vomir The Haxan Cloak ENDON Emptyset
2012: The Eleventh Edition
For the eleventh edition of the festival (October 17–21, 2012) John Waters was invited to present his one Man show "This Filthy World", a vaudeville act that celebrates his film career and obsessional tastes, and to present a retrospective of four of his early films as well as a selection of four of his favorite films. Other retrospectives included works by Austrian filmmaker and writer Christoph Schlingensief, Richard Stanley and Dutch provocateur Edwin Brienen. The international competition included five feature films and 28 short films. 21 musical performances were held during the four concert nights, featuring artists such as Pain Jerk, Brutal Truth, Fat32, rm, Blectum From Blechdom, Kim Gordon, Bill Nace, Maja S. K. Ratkje, Ikue Mori, Greg Pope, Gilles Aubry, Radian, Cellule d'Intervention Metamkine, Kevin Drumm, Thomas Ankersmit, Michael Esposito, Mattin, Zeni Geva, Arcangel Constantini, Yan Jun.
Film Awards 2012
2012 – Best Feature Film: Toad Road by Jason Banker 2012 – Best Short Fiction Film: Boro in the Box by Bertrand Mandico 2012 – Best Short Animation: Bobby Yeah by Robert Morgan 2012 – Best Short Experimental: Six Hundred and Forty-one Slates by Don Swaynos
Music line-up 2012
Wednesday Yan Jun Arcangel Constantini Zeni Geva MATTIN Michael Esposito
Thursday Thomas Ankersmit Kevin Drumm Cellule d'intervention Metamkine Radian, Marzouk & Barrier & Degouts Gilles Aubry
Friday Greg Pope: "light trap" Maja S. K. Ratkje & Ikue Mori Body/Head: Kim Gordon & Bill Nace Blectum From Blechdom rm
Saturday FAT32