HAPPY PILLS tells the story of how we ended up depending on the pharmaceutical industry to feel accomplished. Can we put happiness in a pill?
A journey through six different countries and characters into a world where chemistry is the ultimate response to human pursuits of well-being. From antidepressants to opioid pain or stimulant medication, the film questions our whole consumer society and the so called Eldorado of prescribed happiness.
HAPPY PILLS is not an investigative documentary but rather a modern fable. The director's aim is to make us reflect on our behaviour, on the very idea of happiness, by following six protagonists who believe that chemistry will be able to get them out of trouble. What is there in common between the farmer in Niger who takes painkillers to keep on ploughing and the teenage girl in Massachusetts to whom the parents administer her dose of Ritalin so that she can concentrate in class? The universal obsession with performance, the irrepressible desire to continue to function socially and, therefore, faith in molecules.
HAPPY PILLS is also an exhibition and a book:
www.happypills.me
THEATER RELEASE: FEBRUARY 8th 2023
SCREENINGS IN PRESENCE OF THE DIRECTORS
Les Cinémas du Grütli Genève Wednesday February 8th at 8:15pm
City Club Pully Thursday February 9th at 8pm
Cinepel Apollo 3 Neuchâtel Friday February 10th at 6pm
ABC La Chaux-de-Fonds Friday February 10th at 8pm
Royal Sainte-Croix Sunday February 12th at 6pm
Rex Fribourg Tuesday February 14th at 6:15pm
Astor Vevey Wednesday February 15th at 6:30pm
Cinéma d‘Oron Thursday February 16th at 8pm
The film will later be screened (in February) at both
Zinéma (Lausanne) and
CDD (Geneva)
FESTIVAL DEI POPOLI, World Premiere (2022)
TRONDHEIM DOKUMENTARFESTIVAL (2022)
SOLOTHURNER FILMTAGE (2022)
Saturday January 21st, 1pm, Palace
Monday January 23th, 6pm, Canvas
VICTORIA FILM FESTIVAL (Vancouver, 2022)
Monday February 6th, 6pm, Odeon
Lundi 6 février, 18H, Odeon
ONE WORLD (Prague, 2022)
Documentary – 84 min
OV: English, French, Hebrew, Spanish, Shipibo, Zarma
Subtiles: French, English, German
DCP, 5.1
Switzerland
© 2022 Intermezzo Films
With: Louis, Patrick, Alzouma, Addy, Maris, Yurica
Direction: Arnaud Robert & Paolo Woods
Image: Leandro Monti
Sound: Théo Viroton
Editing: Nicolas Hislaire
Music: Camilla Sparksss
Sound Editing: Vuk Vukmanovic
Sound Design: Benjamin Benoit
Foley Artist: Philippe Van Leer
Foley Recordist: Antoine Hurdebise
Sound Mix: Denis Séchaud
Sound Studio: Studio Masé Genève
Image postproduction studio: Studio Rougegorge, Robin Erard
Assistant Editor: Natasha De Grandi, Lucia Martinez
Camera Second Unit: Edoardo Delille, Jules Guarneri
Additional Sound: Jürg Lempen, Marc Von Stürler
Additional Music: Tobias Preisig
Animations & Graphic Design: Wedodata
Subtitles: Babelfisch Translations
Website: Jeff Gaudinet, Raphaël Arbuz
Production: Intermezzo Films SA, Luc Peter & Katia Monla
Production Assistants: Aurélie Oliveira Pernet, Stéphanie Severino
Administration: Karla Kolder
Accounting: Annick Kammacher
Coproduction: RTS Unité des films documentaires - Steven Artels, Gaspard Lamunière
SSR-SRG - Sven Wälti, Gregory Catella
ARTE G.E.I.E. - Catherine Le Goff
With the support of:
Federal Office of Culture (FOC)
Cinéforom and Loterie Romande
Cultural Foundation SUISSIMAGE
Ernst Göhner Foundation
STAGE POOL FOCAL / Ernst Göhner Foundation
