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The Munich-based distributor Autentic has obtained international rights to the Swiss documentary project Game Over – The Fall of Credit Suisse, bringing a high-profile local investigation to global screens. The production, written and directed by Simon Helbling and co-authored by journalist Arthur Rutishauser, reconstructs the chain of decisions and cultural patterns that preceded the bank’s dramatic 2026 collapse and absorption by UBS. Presented as both a four-part series and a feature-length film, the project combines on-camera testimony with archival records to trace how systemic behaviors evolved within the institution.
The series has already earned critical recognition at festivals and in cinemas: it won best documentary at the Giessen International Series Festival and its theatrical cut became the top-performing documentary in Swiss cinemas in 2026. Production responsibilities are held primarily by Zurich-based Contrast Film together with Swiss media group Tamedia, with co-productions from Swiss Studios and Kinescope Filmproduktion. Producers credited include Ivan Madeo, Anke Beining-Wellhausen, Stefan Halter, Malte Probst and Matthias Greving.
What the series investigates
Game Over examines a banking institution’s decline by following a decades-long arc that the filmmakers argue made the collapse almost inevitable. Using an investigative docuseries approach, Helbling and Rutishauser map cultural drivers — reward structures, risk tolerance and leadership choices — that they say persisted from the 1970s through the bank’s final years. The storytelling leans on interviews with top executives and policymakers as well as internal documents, aiming to show the contrast between a polished corporate image and an operational reality shaped by excess and short-term incentives.
Access and voices
The documentary secured conversations with several prominent figures from the financial and political sphere, broadening its perspective beyond mere chronology. Contributors include current UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti and board chairman Colm Kelleher, former Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank chief Josef Ackermann, and Swiss Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter. The filmmakers describe the sourcing process as arduous: coaxing candid accounts from decision-makers required sustained negotiation and legal navigation, a multi-year effort that involved repeated discussions and resistance before key interviews were granted.
Production context and financing
Financing for the series reflects a shifting Swiss media landscape. Game Over is notable as one of the first high-end Swiss docuseries to be financed predominantly through private channels under the country’s new investment obligation scheme, known colloquially as Lex Netflix, which came into force in 2026. That regulatory framework requires foreign streaming platforms and overseas broadcasters to channel part of their revenue into Swiss film and television production. Producers at Contrast Film framed the project as both a creative and financial experiment under the new rules.
Distribution, reception and future projects
Autentic, a Munich-based sales arm of the Beta Film Group, described the title as appealing to audiences that extend well beyond Switzerland due to its themes of power, accountability and corporate misconduct. The series will be marketed to international broadcasters and platforms in multiple formats: the episodic four-parter for serialized viewing and a condensed 90-minute theatrical edit for cinema runs. Early festival laurels and box-office performance have strengthened the title’s commercial prospects, supporting Mirjam Strasser of Autentic in positioning the film as a globally resonant finance thriller.
What’s next from Contrast Film
Contrast Film is continuing to develop high-stakes narratives: its upcoming six-part thriller Gold — centering on a Swiss gold dealer entangled in the darker networks of the global bullion trade — has been selected for co-production pitching at the Series Mania Forum. The project, produced by Stefan Eichenberger alongside Ivan Madeo, earned an invitation through the Berlinale Co-Pro Series platform and signals the company’s ambition to expand internationally with tightly produced, investigative storytelling.
With international distribution now secured, Game Over – The Fall of Credit Suisse is poised to reach audiences curious about the intersection of finance, governance and human behavior. The series promises to spark conversations about regulatory oversight and institutional responsibility while demonstrating how national film policy changes such as Lex Netflix can alter financing models and enable ambitious local productions to find a global stage.