They Call Me Babu selected for Sydney

27 May 2020 

Dutch documentary They Call Me Babu by Sandra Beerends is selected for European Film Promotion's (EFP) Europe! Voices of Women in Film at the Sydney Film Festival. The 67th edition takes place online from 10 to 21 June, 2020.

Sandra Beerends is one of the ten filmmakers suggested by their respective EFP member organisations (See NL in the Netherlands) and selected by festival director Nashen Moodley. The programme showcases the works of outstanding European women directors and highlights the virtuosity and strength of innovative European cinema by women film artists. Europe! Voices of Women in Film has been given a special focus at this year's reduced digital festival edition. The ten selected European films and their women directors will be presented alongside otherwise exclusively Australian works.

The film tells the story of Alima. She worked for a Dutch family as their babu-nanny-in the former Dutch East Indies. She tells her story of how she came to work for the family, taking care of their baby Jantje. She accompanies them for a short stay in the Netherlands. Upon her return, she lives through the Japanese occupation and the battle for Indonesia's independence. Throughout these years, Alima is loyal to the child, but at the same time she's loyal to her lover Riboet, who is an independence fighter.

They Call Me Babu, produced by Pieter van Huystee Film, world-premiered at IDFA 2019 and recently won the VIKTOR DOK.horizonte award at DOK.fest München.


For further reading:
They Call Me Babu Wins At Dok.Fest (May 2020)
IDFA 2019: They Call Me Babu (November 2019)

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For more information:

Sydney Film Festival (SFF) - www.sff.org.au

European Film Promotion (EFP) - www.efp-online.com/en/

Pieter van Huystee Film
info@pvhfilm.nl
www.phfilm.nl

Sales: Film Transit
jan@filmtransit.com
www.filmtransit.com