The magic of the big screen is about to return to illuminate Locarno, and once again, a major brand confirms its leading role with the new limited-edition Swatch watch dedicated specifically to the Festival. From August 6 to 16, 2025, the renowned Locarno Film Festival, one of the world's most prestigious film events, will be vibrant with energy and innovation, thanks also to the unwavering support of the Swiss watch brand.
Swatch, the festival's main sponsor for many years, celebrates auteur cinema with initiatives that highlight its expressive power. Among these initiatives is the Swatch First Feature Award, a prize worth CHF 15.000 awarded by an international jury to the most outstanding emerging director. This award not only supports emerging talent but actively promotes creativity and innovation in the global film scene.
The true highlight of this edition, and a must-have collector's item for enthusiasts, is the limited-edition Swatch “LOCARNO78” watch. Inspired by the festival's iconic poster, designed by Turner Prize-winning German artist Wolfgang Tillmans, this timepiece captures the essence of the legendary Golden Leopard and the spirit of the event. With its distinctive leopard print extending from the dial to the strap, the watch evokes the hypnotic vortex and holographic abstraction of the original poster. The dial, with its iridescent Solar Spectrum effect and spotted indexes, combined with the dedicated loop emblazoned with the festival's name, makes “LOCARNO78” a true statement of style and passion for cinema. To learn more about the collaboration and the watch, visit the official Swatch website: Locarno Film Festival 2025.
But the Swatch experience at the festival doesn't stop at watches. The Swatch Pit Stop, an installation designed as a gas station, will welcome festivalgoers, serving as a metaphor for the transitional moments that often animate beloved films. Here, in a booth reminiscent of a convenience store, visitors can not only purchase the event's exclusive watches, including the special limited-edition Swatch, but also discover custom artworks created by former artists-in-residence at the Swatch Art Peace Hotel, Shanghai's renowned art residence. Among the creations on display are Juan Pablo Chipe's "Cookie Box Handbag," a hybrid of sculpture and fashion made from recycled materials; Lei Lei's "Hand-Colored," a nut bag that reinterprets the Beijing Silvermine collection with a contemporary twist using the ancient technique of hand-coloring; and Philip Ortelli's "Party 5," which transforms beverage cans into colorful art objects, inviting reflection on everyday aesthetics and consumer culture.
The special Swatch cars, a well-established initiative, will provide film fans with fun and distinctive transportation from the train station and port of Locarno to the heart of the event, anticipating the fun from the very first moment.
The Locarno Film Festival confirms itself, year after year, as an essential meeting place for filmmakers and enthusiasts, a place where the art of storytelling comes to life in one of the largest and most evocative open-air cinemas in the world. Swatch is proud to contribute to this magic, facilitating the encounter between art, innovation, and the vibrant film community.
Limited-edition Swatch watches and art: an unbreakable bond
Since its founding in 1983, Swatch has revolutionized the watchmaking industry with its provocative spirit and joie de vivre, always remaining true to itself through striking designs that capture the zeitgeist. Art has always been an integral part of Swatch's identity, as demonstrated by numerous collaborations with world-renowned artists and the "Swatch Art Peace Hotel" project in Shanghai. Since 2011, this artist residency has welcomed creative minds from all corners of the globe, offering a space of freedom and an incubator of ideas, where over 550 artists from 59 countries have been able to develop their careers and create new artistic expressions. Swatch does more than just make watches; it creates cultural icons that bring art and creativity to everyone's wrist, as its presence at the Locarno Film Festival is a clear demonstration of this.
