Wilder is not a typical crime series. How would you describe it?
Wilder is part of the drama series genre, which means that we work with different arcs from season to season instead of filming a collection of stand-alone episodes. For each one, we choose a plot that can be developed over six 60-minute episodes – the equivalent of four 90-minute movies. It’s a lot, and so we have to create solid characters. After choosing the storyline, we come up with fascinating personalities that audiences will eagerly follow, love, pity, or hate… They have to stir up some emotions!
This is the first series of its kind in Switzerland. It was developed by a group of young actors and I joined the production team a little later. I enjoy playing on the differences between movies and series. In this case, we are closer to the theatricality of a novel. We have time to make unique characters, because they are the ones – not the action – who carry the whole show.
Your series is a cinematographic gem which has even been compared to Twin Peaks and leading Nordic noir productions. What is your creative process?
We quickly decided to seek out little-known sites in Switzerland. We wanted to film special, mystical places, parts of the country that are barely featured in movies. The first season was filmed in the canton of Glarus, while the next two were set in Jura – a fantastic region! We even filmed the Vallée du Joux and its huge, steep rocks, which is a little like the Grand Canyon of Switzerland.
We moved far away from the tourist sites of Switzerland to film in places the general public would never have been, where mountains, snow, and forests make up vast, empty landscapes much like those in westerns. It is not rural in the way you might imagine, but rather archaic. Nature creates these atmospheres that can be a little frightening, and which lend the episodes a particular texture. These settings are much like actors in themselves; they influence the people who live in them and change how they behave. Much like in Fargo, for example, it is easy to think of terrible things happening when we see these places on screen. Our minds immediately imagine the worst.
What makes the main character, Rosa Wilder, so original?
Rosa is a police officer. At the start of the series, she returns to her parents’ village to visit them before leaving for the United States. But when someone is murdered and the crime appears to involve some of her acquaintances, she ends up staying. This is a running theme throughout the seasons – she eventually discovers some personal connection to all the murders she investigates. Wherever she goes, these tragedies affect her private life in one way or another. It’s almost a curse! Rosa is a complex, tense character. She also has a child, who was the result of a one-night stand with one of her old childhood friends, and this will prove to be a huge problem in the fourth season…
Switzerland has four official languages. Which one did you choose for the series?
We filmed in Swiss German, but when we shoot near the border, a French police officer investigating a drug smuggling operation speaks French, and the Albanians who appear speak Albanian. This can be seen in more and more series, such as Tehran, for example. In Switzerland, we are accustomed to speaking all these different languages. I personally speak German or Swiss German depending on who I see throughout the day. The series was also dubbed in French and German, which is something we are not used to seeing in our cinemas. Most films are simply subtitled.
How was the series received, and what else do you have in store?
It was met with incredible success. Almost 40% of Swiss people watched the series and the two leading actors, Sarah Spale and Marcus Signer, became very popular. Season four is currently in post-production, but nothing is set in stone for the future. I think you should stop while people are still asking for more.
Text by: Juliette Démas
Translated from French by: Alexander Uff
Filmed in the most remote cantons of Switzerland, Wilder is a crime series focused on a young inspector dealing with local dramas, a string of murders, and her own dark past. A masterful production that maintains a truly chilling atmosphere throughout.