Peijnenburg’s Paradise Drifters in Berlinale Generation 14plus Lemming’s Berlin Alexander platz selected for Berlin Competition Drama Girl and Kala Azar in Tiger Competition Vanja Kaludjercic: new IFFR director Eye on Akerman in upcoming exhibition Dutch shorts at Clermont-Ferrand Issue #38 February 2020 IFFR, Berlin and Clermont-Ferrand issue Index 4-5 Road to Paradise Mees Peijnenburg’s 20-21 Journey into the past Sonja debut feature Paradise Drifters is Wyss’ Farewell Paradise is a tale half selected for Berlin Generation 14plus a century in the telling, of a woman’s decision to remove herself and her four 6-7 Repurposing a classic Lemming daughters from a warm paradise island Film’s Leontine Petit, Dutch co-producer to a cold and hostile Switzerland of Berlin Alexanderplatz selected for Berlinale competition, discusses their 22-23 Going for Gold It may be set in update of Alfred Döblin’s classic the world of competitive gymnastics but modernist novel from the Weimar era Rogier Hesp’s Gold could be about any sport in which children are pushed too 8-9 For co-pro, see Holland See NL hard toward success by their parents checks out the Dutch angle on some of Berlin 2020’s notable titles 24-25 Dual perspectives Two Dutch films selected for IFFR Perspectives tell 10-11 Dutch shorts to Berlin Two Dutch the lives of two extraordinary characters, shorts, including Student Oscar winner the French caver Michel Siffre and the Marit Weerheijm’s En Route, are actress-turned-spy Leonie Brandt selected for Berlin Generation Kplus, plus a minority co-pro in Berlinale Shorts 26-27 Decaying from within In Jenneke section Boeijink’s modern, dark fairytale Porcelain, cracks in the facade of the 12-13 D for dazzling (and Dutch) Five perfect family life slowly but surely new and diverse talents from The begin to appear Netherlands talk about their selection for the prestigious Berlinale Talents 28-29 Beer at IFFR/CineMart goes programme 2020 Dutch In Beer, Erik van Lieshout very amusingly bites the benefactor’s hand 14-15 Drama out of a crisis In IFFR that feeds him, while two new dynamic Tiger Competition selection Drama Girl, Dutch projects were presented at Dutch director Vincent Boy Kars rewrites CineMart 2020 the life story of a young woman, and then asks the same woman to play 30-31 Vanja at the vanguard See NL herself in its retelling on screen talks to Vanja Kaludjercic, new director of IFFR Rotterdam 16-17 Creature comforts In Janis Rafa’s surrealist debut feature Kala Azar 32-33 Short and sweet Dutch film­ (in IFFR Tiger Competition) a couple makers were once again in the frame at drive around collecting roadkill, as well Clermont-Ferrand, the world’s leading deceased pets to deliver to the short film festival crematorium 34-35 Eye on Akerman The next Eye 18-19 Piece of the Tiger Two of the exhibition is about radical Belgian film­ films in IFFR Tiger Competition had maker Chantal Akerman Dutch minority support, self-taught Arun Karthick’s award-winning Nasir 36 Shooting Star Bilal Wahib, star of (Rinkel Film) and La Fortaleza Mees Peijnenburg’s Paradise Drifters, (co-produced by Viking Film) selected for Berlin Generation 14plus 2 COLOPHON SEE NL, a collaboration between Eye and the Netherlands Film Fund, is the umbrella body for the international promotion of Dutch films and film culture. SEE NL Magazine is published four times per year and is distributed to international film professionals. Editors in chief: Ido Abram. Nathalie Mierop (Eye), Jonathan Mees (Netherlands Film Fund) Executive editor: Nick Cunningham Contributors: Geoffrey Macnab Concept & Design: Lava.nl Layout: def., Amsterdam Printing: mediaLiaison Printed on FSC paper © All rights reserved: The Netherlands Film Fund and Eye Filmmuseum 2020 CONTACT Ido Abram Director of SEE NL E [email protected] Eye Filmmuseum PO BOX 37767 1030 BJ T Amsterdam The Netherlands T +31 20 758 2375 W www.eyefilm.nl Jonathan Mees Communications Manager Netherlands Film Fund E [email protected] Netherlands Film Fund Pijnackerstraat 5 1072 JS Amsterdam The Netherlands T +31 20 570 7676 W www.filmfund.nl ISSN: 2589-3521 Cover: Paradise Drifters Mees Peijnenburg See page 4 Farewell Paradise Sonja Wyss page 20 3 Berlin Generation 14plus and IFFR Limelight Road to Paradise Paradise Drifters Mees Peijnenburg Mees Peijnenburg straightforward circumstances. young adults between 18 and 25 Peijnenburg hadn’t been able to find “can still find a bed at night when anyone to play Chloe when his they don’t have some other place to girlfriend tipped him off about an fall back on.” actress she had seen on a Dutch NTR TV programme, Dream School, The film (due to be released in about youngsters from troubled The Netherlands in April by Gusto) backgrounds who are given the develops into a road movie. It was chance to go back to school. shot all over Europe, in Marseilles and Barcelona as well as in The Paradise Drifters is writer-direc tor “She was super pure, honest, open, Nether lands. Peijnenburg sees it as Mees Peijnenburg’s debut feature, fragile,” Peijnenburg says of the following on from his Golden Calf writes Geoffrey Macnab, follow- audition that Van Waring gave him. winning short film We Will Never Be ing on from the young Dutch “She was a powerhouse of interest Royals, about a brother and sister director’s acclaimed shorts for me.” The fact that she didn’t look living in youth care, moving from Even Cowboys Get To Cry (2013), anything like the Chloe he had foster homes to youth prison and A Hole In My Heart (2015) and originally envisaged didn’t put him looking desperately for a place in We Will Never Be Royals (2015). off in the slightest. “The energy she society. gave was spot on.” In Paradise Drifters, supported by “Even though all the ingredients for De Oversteek scheme and Production Bilal Wahib had had a minor part in a horrible life were present, these Incentive, three young people from one of the director’s shorts. “In real kids had a glance in their eyes, had different but equally tough back­ life, he has an extra ordinary energy,” a fighting spirit in their way of talking grounds are thrown together. Peijnenburg says of the actor whose and behaving,” the director says of Lorenzo (Jonas Smulders), Yousef role calls for him to be withdrawn the defiance he saw continually (Bilal Wahib) and Chloe (Tamar van and introspective. “In our film, he during his extensive research into Waning) are outsiders on the margins has to play an introverted, suicidal alienated youth. “Whereas my of society, all “searching for character which I was really previous film was still set in connections, searching for love,” interested to see… all the energy institutions and under the flag of but are continually confronted with went into his eyes, his mind, and he society, this film starts off where that violence and rejection. was really good.” stops, when you are 18 and being dropped on the streets literally.” Peijnenburg chose his actors very The director gave the three leads carefully. “I think the casting of each time to get to know each other and As an adolescent himself, Peijnen­ film is almost the most crucial part to develop their characters. “I let burg came from a more comfortable of the process. I like to take time to them write letters to me with their background. “I was a skateboarder, find the right people.” thoughts.” I did a lot of filmmaking already back then, I did pictures. I was very Jonas Smulders had appeared in Peijnenburg did extensive research much on the creative spectrum.” Peijnenburg’s graduation short and for Paradise Drifters. “I’ve been No, he wasn’t a rebel himself but he is described by the director as working on this film for several has always been drawn to characters “a natural fit” for his role as the years,” he says. He visited like Chloe in his film who have the charismatic Lorenzo. Tamar van numerous child protection homes energy to fight back, even when every­ Waning was discovered in less and Salvation Army hostels where thing seems pitched against them. 4 Berlin Generation 14plus and IFFR Limelight Paradise Drifters Mees Peijnenburg “I think the casting of each film is almost the most crucial part of the process” Paradise Drifters Director & script: Mees Peijnenburg Production: Pupkin Film Sales: Orange Studio 5 Berlin Competition Berlin Alexanderplatz Burhan Qurbani “We really get into the head of an illegal refugee and experience what it is like to arrive in Europe and how to survive” Berlin Alexanderplatz Director: Burhan Qurbani Script: Burhan Qurbani, Martin Behnke Production: Sommerhaus (DE) Co-production: Lemming Film (NL) Sales: Beta Cinema 6 Berlin Competition Berlin Alexanderplatz Burhan Qurbani Repurposing a classic Leontine Petit 2016. “We really get into the head of co­produce with these really out­ an illegal refugee and experience standing directors (like Burhan what it is like to arrive in Europe and Qurbani), I feel almost honoured how to survive.” that we can be part of such projects.” Lemming had been following the The Lemming boss adds that it is project from the outset. The film rare for projects on the scale of had a relatively high budget, around Berlin Alexanderplatz to be made in © Elsbeth Struijk van Bergen €5 million. Although considerable The Netherlands. The advantages of support was available in Germany being involved are self­evident: Geoffrey Macnab talks to Leontine itself, Sommerhaus eventually Dutch technicians get to show their Petit, Dutch co-producer of Berlin decided to make it as a co­pro and to talent and work on bigger European Alexanderplatz.