Petra Volpe (second left) and the 'Late Shift' team

Source: FOC/Eduard Meltzer

Petra Volpe (second left) and the ‘Late Shift’ team

Petra Volpe’s Late Shift led the winners at the Swiss Film Academy’s 2026 Swiss Film Awards, taking four prizes including best feature film.

At the ceremony held on Friday, March 27, the film also won best screenplay for Volpe; best sound for Jacques Kieffer, Gina Keller and Marco Teufen; and the inaugural box office quartz award for the film with the highest number of admissions in Swiss cinemas.

Scroll down for the full list of feature winners

Late Shift launched as a Berlinale Special title in February 2025, before selling to more than 50 territories worldwide, and being shortlisted for the international feature Oscar for Switzerland. The film stars Leonie Benesch as a nurse on an understaffed hospital ward, whose shift turns into a nerve-racking race against time.

Moris Freiburghaus’s I Love You, I Leave You won two awards: the best documentary film prize and best film score for Dino Brandao.

Piet Baumgartner’s San Sebastian 2024 title Bagger Drama took the two leading acting prizes: best actress for Bettina Stucky, and best actor for Phil Hayes. Sven Schelker won the best supporting role prize for his performance in Stefan Haupt’s I’m Not Stiller (Stiller).

Damien Hauser won a special award from the Swiss Film Academy for what it described as “innovative use of technology” in Memory Of Princess Mumbi, which Hauser wrote, directed, edited, shot and produced, the latter with Kaleem Aftab and Shandra Apondi.

The Swiss Film honorary award went to director and producer Villi Hermann, whose films include San Gottardo, winner of the Silver Leopard at Locarno Film Festival in 1977.

Swiss Film Awards 2026

Best feature film – Late Shift, dir. Petra Volpe

Best documentary film – I Love You, I Leave You, dir. Moris Freiburghaus

Best animated film – Ich Bin Nicht Sicher, dir. Luisa Zurcher

Best screenplay – Petra Volpe for Late Shift

Best actress – Bettina Stucky for Bagger Drama

Best actor – Phil Hayes for Bagger Drama

Best supporting role – Sven Schelker for Stiller

Best film score – Dino Brandao for I Love You, I Leave You

Best cinematography – Benoit Dervaux for À Bras-Le-Corps

Best film editing – Karine Sudan for À Bras-Le-Corps

Best sound – Jacques Kieffer, Gina Keller, Marco Teufen for Late Shift

Special academy award – Damien Hauser, innovative use of new technology in Memory Of Princess Mumbi

Swiss film honorary award – Villi Hermann

Box Office Quartz – Late Shift, dir. Petra Volpe

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