Child protection Switzerland – Portraits
These films are part of the ‘Assez stop!’ audiovisual pack.
www.protectionenfance.ch/violence-au-sein-du-couple
of the Swiss Child Protection Foundation.
Simona: “My daughters have been through too much”
Film from 2017, 27 minutes (FR, DE, IT).
This film shows the massive violence suffered by Simona, the mother of a ten-year-old daughter and a five-year-old daughter, at the hands of the father of her second daughter. As well as the descriptions of the mother, Simona, and the grandmother, the two children also speak out and express themselves at length. Playing with the grandmother and talking to a teacher, they give their views on the violence they have experienced. They describe violent situations and discuss concepts such as trust, protection, fear, courage, family, cohesion and sadness. They talk about what makes them feel good and what difficulties they face today.
Cécile: “The heart weighs a ton”
Film from 2017, 21 minutes (FR, DE, IT).
Throughout her childhood and youth, Cécile was constantly exposed to violence between her parents. In the film, she describes how her father’s threats and violence towards her mother affected her as a child, and what her fears, thoughts and reactions were. She explains how her parents’ separation in some ways accentuated the violence. She talks very openly about the times when she put herself in danger. Cécile describes how she now puts what she has experienced back into her life and what has helped her to master the situation.
Nicola: “It’s as if I had a dead spot inside me”
Film from 2017, 18 minutes (FR, DE, IT).
Nicola, 18, recounts his experiences as a young mixed-race man in Switzerland of his father’s violence. He talks about how he first felt his absence, and then was afraid of him and hated him. As a starting point, Nicola expresses his feeling of being at a ‘standstill’. He talks about how difficult it was to feel appreciated and what helped him to do so. In particular, he describes how he worked to overcome this ‘dead spot’, so that he didn’t just feel like an observer of his life, but a full participant in it.
Lisa: “She grabs my hand, he pulls me to him with his other hand”
Film de 2017, 17 minutes (FR, DE, IT).
Lisa is now 26 years old. When she was around 7 years old, an argument between her parents woke her up one morning. Previously, conflicts between her parents had regularly broken out in the evening. Lisa listened helplessly and tearfully as they argued. One morning, her mother took her by the hand and left the house to take refuge with her grandmother. Her father tried to hold her back and pull her towards him. It’s a painful memory for Lisa. She didn’t see her father again for a long time, until weekend visits were introduced. At the time, Lisa saw those weekends as a waste. Since then, Lisa has analysed parental confrontations in depth. In the film, she talks about how she felt then and now in her own relationships, how difficult it still is for her to feel valued and how alone she feels.
Martin: “What hurts me most is what I did to the children”
Film from 2017, 15 minutes (FR, DE, IT).
Martin hit his wife several times. He is the father of five children who now live in care. He is separated from his wife. Martin has completed a domestic violence learning programme and is now trying to get his children back home. What led him to become violent? How do you change such behaviour? What do children need from their parents? How can a man who has been violent be perceived by the authorities and institutions as an attentive and caring father? In the film, Martin is preoccupied with these questions and is looking for answers.