Moritz de Hadeln, the prolific film festival director who headed up Locarno, Berlin and Venice across a decades-spanning career, has died. He was 85.
De Hadeln, who earned the title “Mr. Film Festival” from his biographer and CEO of Zurich Film Festival Christian Jungen, died on Saturday, July 4, in a hospital in Nyon, Switzerland, close to his home. Jungen confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that the Swiss suffered from complications following a recent medical procedure.
Born in England in 1940, de Hadeln’s first foray in the industry came as a documentarian and photographer. He directed his first feature, Le Pele, in 1963, and his second film, Ombres et Mirages, came shortly after in 1966. He was a film editor in Zurich alongside Yves Allegret, and worked as an assistant director at CCC Film Studios Berlin. In 1969, de Hadeln and his wife, Erika von dem Hagen, founded the Nyon International Documentary Film Festival (known as the Visions du Reel festival today) which he directed until 1979. Erika took over and led Nyon from 1981 to 1993.
De Hadeln’s career lift-off came in 1972, when he was chief of the Locarno International Film Festival and said to have heralded in a new era of international recognition for the event. During his time in charge at Locarno, de Hadeln introduced the outdoor screenings on the Piazza Grande and introduced numerous sidebar events.
