The Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) has agreed to sell the Zurich Film Festival after a decade of ownership, handing control to a five-member management group led by artistic director Christian Jungen. The deal, confirmed Thursday, keeps Switzerland’s largest film showcase in local hands while freeing it from a media-company parent that cited a “challenging cultural environment” for the divestment.
Under the management buy-out, Jungen is joined by vice-director Reta Guetg, TV host and entrepreneur Max Loong, longtime festival president Felix E. Müller and investment specialist Marek Skreta. NZZ chief executive Felix Graf said the move “enables the festival’s next phase of professionalisation and strategic development” while NZZ remains a main partner for three more years, providing financial continuity during the transition.
Jungen vowed to keep thinking “big and international,” aiming to show the season’s Oscar contenders first in Zurich and to lure new private backers alongside public funds. The festival, which drew a record 140,000 admissions and best-ever ticket revenue in its 2024 anniversary edition, has nevertheless lost headline sponsors such as Generali in recent years, intensifying pressure on its budget.
As part of the shake-up, boutique operator Kinokoni will take over the six-screen Frame cinema—branded the “Home of ZFF”—promising more gastronomy and event rentals while preserving the curated year-round programme that feeds the festival’s brand. Konrad Schibli, whose company runs similar venues in Olten and Basel, said the concept would turn Frame into a daily meeting point for film lovers.
Industry observers see the sale as a vote of confidence in Jungen, a former critic who guided the festival through the pandemic and a Hollywood strike, and who secured the takeover of the bankrupt Kosmos complex—now Frame—in 2023. But some analysts warn that running a 140-million-franc event without a deep-pocketed parent could test the new owners’ fundraising skills, especially as Swiss public subsidies tighten.
Still, the immediate reaction from local media has been largely positive, with tabloids hailing a “Zürcher Lösung” and business dailies noting that the festival’s leadership now has the agility it long demanded.