International sales outfit Salaud Morisset has picked up worldwide rights to Silent Rebellion (À bras‑le‑corps), the debut feature by Swiss filmmaker Marie‑Elsa Sgualdo, ahead of the drama’s world premiere in the new Spotlight strand at the 82nd Venice Film Festival that opens 27 August. Set in 1992 Switzerland, the 98‑minute film follows 15‑year‑old Emma, who refuses to surrender the baby conceived after a rape, pitting her against the iron‑fisted elders of her rural Protestant village.
Venice’s official listing confirms the picture will screen out of competition yet within the festival’s own programme, giving Sgualdo—best known for Cannes Directors’ Fortnight short You Can’t Do Everything at Once…—her first Lido berth. Lila Gueneau leads a cast that includes Grégoire Colin, Thomas Doret and Aurélia Petit.
Produced by Lausanne’s Box Productions with Belgium’s Hélicotronc and France’s Offshore, the film was shot in French across alpine locations last winter and locked at 96–98 minutes in post‑production earlier this month. Salaud Morisset, headquartered in Paris and Berlin, will launch marketing materials and a first‑look clip to buyers on the Lido before rolling out a territory‑by‑territory campaign at Toronto.
Founder François Morisset said the company was attracted to “a fiercely contemporary story disguised as period drama,” noting that Emma’s fight for bodily autonomy “resonates far beyond Swiss borders.”Early interest appears strong: the Biennale’s ticket portal logged above‑average reservation requests within hours of the Spotlight schedule going live, according to festival officials.
Sgualdo co‑wrote the screenplay with Nadine Lamari and directs from her own short‑film lineage that often blends intimate female portraits with social critique. The director’s move into long‑form drama expands a Swiss‑Francophone wave at this year’s Venice edition, joining Paolo Sorrentino’s opener La Grazia and Guillaume Nicloux’s Le Silence.
Silent Rebellion will be delivered as a DCP with English and German subtitles, with filmmakers targeting a late‑2025 Swiss release followed by staggered launches in France, Belgium and other key European markets. Negotiations for North‑American and Asian rights are expected to begin during Venice, where Salaud Morisset previously closed significant deals on shorts that went on to Oscar nominations.
