Dutch jive to Sundance
Dutch jive to Sundance
Netherlands filmmakers will be turning out in force at the upcoming
Sundance Film Festival, with four world premieres among the seven Dutch
productions and co-productions in official selection.
The World Cinema Dramatic Competition includes world premieres of two minority co-productions: Belgica and Mammal. Belgica by
Felix van Groeningen (Dutch co-producer: Topkapi Films) is about two
brothers who run a bar together. But the more their business thrives,
the more estranged the brothers become. Mammal by Rebecca Daly
(Dutch co-producer: Rinkel Film) is a compelling and unorthodox love
story between a homeless youth and woman who has lost her son in tragic
circumstances.
Pieter-Jan De Pue’s The Land of the Enlightened (Dutch
co-producer: Submarine), about a group of Afghanistani children who
sell explosives to child workers in a lapis lazuli mine, will world
premiere in World Cinema Documentary Competition.
Another minority co-production, Love and Friendship, will world premiere as part of the Premieres
program. Adapted from the Jane Austen novel, the film is directed by
Whit Stillman (NL co-prod: Revolver) and stars Kate Beckinsale, Chloë
Sevigny and Stephen Fry.
The Dutch family film Little Gangster by Arne Toonen (produced by Shooting Star Filmcompany and written by Lotte Tabbers) will be presented in Sundance Kids.
The film had its international premiere at the Seoul Youth
International Film Festival and has received several international
awards, among them the Starboy Prize of the Oulo International
Children's and Youth Film Festival. Little Gangster tells the
story of Rik (11) and his father who are constantly bullied. When his
dad is promoted and they move to a new town, Rik decides to tell
everybody his dad is really a Mafia boss.
Included in New Frontier is the virtual reality music video Surge,
directed and produced by Dutch artist Arjan van Meerten. The film is an
abstract meditation on the evolutionary process and our relentless
march towards complexity.
Finally, the minority co-production The Lobster by Yorgos Lanthimos (NL co-prod: Lemming) is selected for Spotlight.
The sci-fi/comedy/drama feature world premiered at Cannes where it won
the Jury Prize. It has since been selected for numerous film festivals
worldwide.
All the above mentioned feature films have been supported by the Netherlands Film Fund.
The Sundance Film Festival 2016 takes place 21 - 31 January.
For more information:
Sundance Film Festival: www.sundance.org/festivals