Biography
Reto Caduff was born in 1967 in Zurich, Switzerland. In the mid-1980s, while still a teenager, he launched his own record label. He later trained in typography and graphic design. From 1989 to 1991, Caduff worked as an editor and presenter at the Swiss radio station DRS 3 (now SRF 3), followed by a position as an editor at Swiss Television (SF) until 1993. In 1994, he moved to the United States - first to New York, and then to Los Angeles in 1998. During this time, he directed numerous music videos and several short to mid-length documentaries for Swiss Television, including "Kids&Guns" (1995), "Area 51" (1996), and "Lowrider" (1996), which explored the American lowrider car culture. Over the years, he also produced exhibition films for institutions such as the Getty Research Institute, the Marian Goodman Gallery, Kunsthaus Graz, and the Kestner Gesellschaft.
Caduff's first feature-length documentary, "Krokus: As Long as We Live" (2004), told the turbulent story of the legendary Swiss hard rock band Krokus and was awarded the Zurich Film Prize. In the years that followed, he continued to document prominent figures in Swiss music. In "Lovebugs – Taiwan Jetlag" (CH 2006), he accompanied the Basel-based band Lovebugs on a tour through Taiwan. In "Charlie Haden" (CH 2009), he portrayed the eponymous American musician, bandleader, and composer.
With "The Visual Language of Herbert Matter" (CH 2011), Caduff created a documentary portrait of Swiss graphic designer, artist, and photographer Herbert Matter (1907–1984). His film "Conny Plank – The Potential of Noise" (2017), about the influential German music producer and sound engineer Konrad "Conny" Plank (1940–1987), earned him the Music Award from Opus GmbH at the German Documentary Film Awards, shared with co-director Stephan Plank.
As a photographer, Caduff published the portrait book "Freckles" in 2012, and contributed to publications including Travel & Leisure, brand eins, and the Swiss Airlines Magazine. In 2014, he founded Sturm & Drang, a Zurich-based publishing house specializing in fine art photography books. He also runs the creative agency Image and Content, based in Filzbach, Switzerland.
In October 2024, Caduff returned to the Hof International Film Festival with a new feature-length documentary: "Einfach Machen! She-Punks von 1977 bis heute" ("Don't Talk, Do! She-Punks from 1977 until Today"), which chronicles pioneering women in the German-speaking punk scene. The film’s general theatrical release followed in May 2025.