Mateo Ybarra’s ‘Small Talk,’ a Locarno Premiere, Takes a Peek Into Switzerland’s Last Remaining Etiquette School for Women

“Small Talk,” directed my Mateo Ybarra (“Over Our Hills,” “Summer Camp”), will have its world premiere at the Locarno Film Festival on Aug. 11.

The film stars Hélène Bares (“Evy & Me”) as Charlie, who signs up for a summer course at Switzerland’s only remaining etiquette school for women. Her reason for attending is to land a career within the elite luxury industry. The film profiles real women from all over the world and addresses issues of underlying gender roles, class hierarchy, and female empowerment.

“What makes ‘Small Talk’ stand out is the way fiction and documentary truly feed into each other. On one hand you’re emotionally invested in Charlie’s story, on the other you’re watching this fascinating institution with almost an ethnographic curiosity. You leave the film both fully entertained and full of questions about the world, which is pretty rare,” said Garance Targowla, sales & acquisition manager at Urban Sales, which handles “Small Talk.”

The film is produced by Mateo Ybarra and Madeline Robert of L’Artifice, and co-produced by RTS Radio Télévision Suisse.

Mateo Ybarra