Production: SRF Swiss Radio and Television
Author: Charles Ferdinand Ramuz
Producer: Reto Ott
Director: Stefan Weber
Sound engineer: Stefan Weber
Actors: Katja Reinke, Katrin Thurm, Thomas Sarbacher, Vincent Leittersdorf, Gottfried Breitfuss
Dramaturgy: Lia Schmieder
Synopsis:
The Earth is plunging into the Sun following an accident in the gravitational system. Around the globe, it is growing ever hotter. This is the news spreading around the world. At first, it is met with disbelief; people are enjoying the lovely weather. But it soon becomes clear: there is no escape from the heat.
Charles Ferdinand Ramuz (1878-1947), writer, poet, and essayist, is considered one of the most important figures in Swiss literature in French. When his novel, originally titled Présence de la mort, was published in 1922, C. F. Ramuz knew nothing of the threat of global warming. The parallels between contemporary scenarios and Ramuz’s more than century-old dystopia are striking, yet Into the Sun relies on neither action nor drama. Instead, it offers a vivid, richly visual depiction of the idyllic world around Lake Geneva, where the author lived. Only gradually does the inhabitants’ response to the looming disaster take shape. At first, the catastrophe is denied; the news is not taken seriously: “Here, we lack the necessary imagination.” But with each passing day, the temperature rises by a degree, and the social order begins to unravel. What was once recognised turns eerie, what was once familiar turns lethal. In the face of apocalypse, indulgence, vigilantism, and resignation take hold.
Swiss sound artist Stefan Weber has succeeded in translating the overwhelming sense of threat and impending doom into a compelling, immersive listening experience.
