Mateo Ybarra’s ‘Small Talk,’ a Locarno Premiere, Takes a Peek Into Switzerland’s Last Remaining Etiquette School for Women

“Small Talk,” directed my Mateo Ybarra (“Over Our Hills,” “Summer Camp”), will have its world premiere at the Locarno Film Festival on Aug. 11. The film stars Hélène Bares (“Evy & Me”) as Charlie, who signs up for a summer course at Switzerland’s only remaining etiquette school for women. The film profiles real women from all over the world and addresses issues of underlying gender roles, class hierarchy, and female empowerment. “What makes ‘Small Talk’ stand out is the way fiction and documentary truly feed into each other. Popular on VarietyThe film is produced by Mateo Ybarra and Madeline Robert of L’Artifice, and co-produced by RTS Radio Télévision Suisse.