Of Swiss and French nationalities, Ursula Meier studied filmmaking in Belgium. The success of her short films allowed her to focus on her own fictions and documentaries. She was then chosen to participate in the Arte TV film series “Masculin Féminin” and directed “Des épaules solides” (“Strong Shoulders”) which screened worldwide in festivals including the ACID section at Cannes and the New Directors/New Films Festival in NYC. In 2008, her first feature film “Home”, with Isabelle Huppert and Olivier Gourmet, was selected for the Cannes Critics Week and received numerous awards and nominations worldwide (including three French César nominations). In 2012, “L’Enfant d’en haut” (“Sister”) with Léa Seydoux, Kacey Mottet Klein and Gillian Anderson received a Silver Bear-Special Prize at the Berlin Film Festival. It was also nominated for the Independent Spirit Awards-Best Foreign Film and the actor Kacey Mottet Klein was nominated at the French César for Best New Male Actor. The film was awarded, like “Home”, three Quartz at the Swiss Film Awards, including Best Feature Film, and represented Switzerland again at the Oscars. In 2014, she took part in the collective film “Les ponts de Sarajevo” (“Bridges of Sarajevo”) presented out of competition in the Official Selection at the Cannes Film Festival. In 2018, she directed Berlinale’s Panorama entry “Journal de ma tête” (“Diary of my mind”) with Fanny Ardant and Kacey Mottet Klein, a TV film she made as part of the “Ondes de choc” (“Shock Waves”) collection, inspired by Swiss news stories. In 2021, she shot “The Line” starring Stéphanie Blanchoud and Valeria Bruni Tedeschi. The film is part of Berlinale’s 2022 main competition and was awarded three Quartz at the Swiss Film Awards 2023.
Ursula Meier has served on numerous international festival juries, including the International Competition Jury at the 69th Venice Film Festival, the Best First Feature Jury at the 66th Berlinale, and as Chair of the Caméra d’Or Jury at the 71st Cannes Film Festival.
She is currently preparing her English-language debut project, “Quiet Land”, which received the Suissimage grant for female directors.
