DIRECTOR BIOGRAPHY - Noa Epars, Marvin Merkel

Noa Epars is a filmmaker based in Lausanne, Switzerland, born in 1998. After earning a bachelor’s degree in French literature and history from the University of Lausanne, he obtained a bachelor’s degree in film at HEAD – Geneva in 2024, specializing in editing. His work moves between documentary and experimental cinema. His films have been screened at international festivals such as New Directors/New Films in New York, the Locarno Film Festival, and Cinéma du Réel. In 2024, he presented an installation at the Verzasca Foto Film Festival. That same year, he served on the jury of the Lausanne Underground Film Festival (LUFF). Marvin Merkel is a visual artist based in Lausanne. A graduate of ECAL, he explores notions of identity, culture, and memory through photography, video, and sculpture. His project Get Swiss or Die Trying (2024), a photographic investigation of Swiss national identity, was exhibited at La Vetrina in Venice and was a finalist for the 2025 Swiss Design Awards. In 2025, he co-directed the short film Always Wanted to Be God, Never Wanted to Do Good with Noa Epars. Together, they have already collaborated on numerous projects, including in 2022, when they set a Swiss record.