CLUB PLATTE 27 - UNDERGROUND EXPLOSION

From 1965 to the mid-1970s, Zurich's avant-garde youth gathered at Platte 27. Founded by three young men (Herbert Wertli, Edi Stöckli and Jonas Haefeli) the club quickly became a vibrant meeting place for free spirits of all kinds. Filmmakers, musicians, artists and night owls came together to celebrate, discover American underground and Swiss experimental films, attend concerts and exhibitions, and embrace the spirit of freedom that defined the era.
International rock music filled the club, while screenings of experimental and underground films offered a bold alternative to the Heimatfilm tradition associated with directors such as Franz Schnyder. Contemporary art exhibitions sparked lively discussions - not least about politics.
When people hear the phrase "Zurich 1968", they immediately think of the Globus riots and the political struggle for an autonomous youth centre, which culminated in violent street clashes. What is often overlooked, however, is the simultaneous cultural awakening - a pop culture revolution whose impact proved far more enduring than the ultimately futile fight for a youth centre. Platte 27 became its symbol.
A haven of counterculture that regularly attracted hundreds of visitors on weekends, the club ignited a liberating cultural shift in Zurich - a city then shaped by conservative Protestant values - the effects of which can still be felt today.
"Underground Explosion" tells the story of the club for the first time, through a fresh visual language shaped by the pop-cultural aesthetics of the era.