Jela Hasler

Jela studied photography in Zurich and Istanbul, and cinema in Lucerne.
With a background in documentary and experimental cinema, she’s made several short films that were shown at festivals like Locarno, IDFA, Hot Docs etc. Her first fictional short ÜBER WASSER premiered at Semaine de la Critique Cannes 2021. The same year, LES NOUVELLES ÈVES was released in Swiss cinemas, a documentary she co-directed with five other filmmakers.
She’s been a resident at Cité des Arts Paris, and is an alumna of ZFF Masterclass, GIFF New Talent Screens and FEST Training Grounds. She is a board member of the Swiss short film association Pro Short as well as the Swiss directors’ and screenwriters’ association ARF/FDS.
Jela is currently developing her first feature, TO PUT OUT ONE FIRE, as well as her next short film LA GRAVIDITÉ.

To put out one fire

LIM | Less is More 2022

Anna starts her first job as an environmental engineer at the city’s foresting department. Whilst being happy to put her knowledge to use and do some good, she soon realises that she’ll have to adapt to Granit, a gardener with great experience and little interest in changing his ways. Trying to connect with him, she covers up for a mistake he makes, only making things worse. Torn between saving a tree, her career or the gardener’s reputation, Anna gets tangled up in her own beliefs. Her political convictions, though coming from the best of intentions, continuously stand in her way as she has a hard time acting according to them.