Switzerland Selects Nicolas Wadimoff Documentary “Who Is Still Alive” (Qui Vit Encore) as Its Oscar Submission for Best International Feature

Switzerland has selected Nicolas Wadimoff’s documentary “Who Is Still Alive” (Qui Vit Encore) as its official submission for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film, according to Deadline. The selection places the film in the international feature category’s formal competition as Switzerland’s representative entry for the Oscars.

Deadline reports that “Who Is Still Alive” premiered in Venice at the 2025 Giornate degli Autori. The documentary focuses on Palestinian refugees who fled Gaza amid the Gaza war, and it is framed around themes of displacement and the loss of home.

The film’s title and subject matter, as described by Deadline, reflect what the production presents as the enduring question faced by people uprooted by conflict: whether life, family, and community can continue after a home has been taken away. Deadline characterizes the documentary as being set against the broader background of the Gaza war, with the refugees’ experience forming the core of the narrative.

The announcement arrives as countries continue to finalize their Oscar submissions for the Best International Feature category, a process that generally requires each country to choose one film to send forward. In Switzerland’s case, “Who Is Still Alive” has been named the selected entry rather than other contenders, making Wadimoff’s documentary the project representing the country in the category’s next stage.

For audiences and cultural institutions, the selection elevates a documentary that directly connects festival exposure to one of the industry’s most visible global award platforms. The film’s Venice premiere is positioned by Deadline as an early major public step for the project, and the Oscar submission offers another avenue for distribution and attention beyond festival circuits.

Deadline’s report ties the documentary’s subject to the ongoing humanitarian and social consequences of the Gaza war, and it frames the film as a record of displacement through the experiences of Palestinian refugees who fled Gaza. With the country’s Oscar submission now locked in, the film’s next milestones would be tied to how entries advance within the Academy’s international feature process.

In the near term, the choice means Switzerland will put “Who Is Still Alive” forward for the Oscars’ Best International Feature Film consideration, with the film moving from national selection into the category’s subsequent review stages. The documentary’s journey, from Venice in 2025 to Switzerland’s official Oscar entry in 2026, underscores how international feature awards increasingly intersect with contemporary crisis-related storytelling.