Our closing guest is the brand new Amsterdammer LARRY WILSON ! Larry is a screenwriter, director and producer whose feature film credits include BEETLEJUICE, THE ADDAMS FAMILY, and THE LITTLE VAMPIRE. Larry’s television credits include TALES FROM THE CRYPT, THE YEAR WITHOUT A SANTA CLAUS, and ALIENS FOR BREAKFAST. Larry was a Creative Executive at Paramount Pictures. He also worked as a story analyst for Columbia, Warner Bros., Paramount, and Universal and he has worked with several writer/directors like James Cameron, Kathryn Bigelow and (of course) Tim Burton.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the team of:

LONE WOLF

Hero Hemmingsley | Live-Action | 17:15

A young man prepares himself to commit a terror attack. Arriving at the scene he has chosen for his assault, he bumps into another youngster visiting the same location. A short film in one take, filmed from the perspective of both perpetrator and victim.

NOVEMBER WINNER: Screening and Announcement of our JURY TEAM favourite movie in November.

We are excited to have the ever-so talented CHRIS PETERS as our special guest this session. He’s known for playing the title role in the film TONIO dir by Paula van der Oest. He currently stars in Michiel van Erp’s NIEMAND IN DE STAD out in cinemas now. In 2019 Chris will play one of the leads on the theatre adaptation of TURKS FRUIT, produced by Hummelinck Stuurman, and based on Jan Wolker’s book.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

THE GAME OF CHANCE

Anselm Oettel | Animation | 06:56

Glücksspiel, "The Game of Chance", is an abstract and minimalistic animation in which choices are the central subject. Because to what degree do the choices we make dictate the rest of our lives? Are we aware of the fact that the choices we make for ourselves also influence the lives of the people around us? With Glückspiel I want to show how the main character’s egotistical choices bring not only chaos to his own life, but also to that of others. Now it’s up to him to face the consequences of the choices that he made.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Brandon Grötzinger & Wander Theunis | Live-Action | 09:00

On the last day of the year, a dispirited work-at-home phone interpreter has her moribund life turned upside down when she answers an unexpected emergency call.

It’s a Shortcutz tradition! Every year we invite the director of the Best Film Golden Calf winner. This year we are honoured to welcome back the one and only JORAM LÜRSEN, director for BANKIER VAN VERZET, golden calf winner for Best Film, Best Actor (Jacob Derwig), Best Female Supporting Act (Fockeline Ouwekerk), Best Production Design (Harry Ammerlaan) and the audience award for best film.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

SISTERS

Daphne Lucker | Experimental | 15:04

Three sisters grow up in a broken home. They are at each other’s mercy and survive as long as they are together. But is their loving connection strong enough to endure their gloomy surroundings?

BECOMING

Jan van IJken | Documentary | 06:15

Becoming is a short film about the miraculous genesis of animal life. In great microscopic detail, we see the 'making of' an Alpine Newt in its transparent egg from the first cell division to hatching. A single cell is transformed into a complete, complex living organism with a beating heart and running bloodstream.

The first stages of embryonic development are roughly the same for all animals, including humans. In the film, we can observe a universal process which normally is invisible: the very beginning of an animal's life.

OCTOBER WINNER: Screening and Announcement of our JURY TEAM favourite movie in October.

We are honoured to receive as our special guest this session vibrant MELODY KLAVER. Melody ‘s career as been nothing but success! At age 15 Melody got nominated for a Golden Calf for Best Actress (DIEP), which made her the youngest actress ever to be nominated for this prestigious award. Later she won The Rembrandt Award for Best actress (WINTER IN WARTIME). Now, Melody is the leading star in the film of Oscar-nominee Ben Sombogaart’s RAFAËL. RAFAËL is now on the cinemas across the country.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

FINAL STOP

Edson da Conceicao | Live-Action | 09:58 | PREMIERE

Mo, a bitter young man, steps into the subway on a busy morning, wearing a bomb vest. On his way to Central Station he meets the old man Khalid. Khalid starts a conversation that will change Mo’s life forever.

NIMF

Suze Gil | Animation | 07:17

Agatha, the head nymph, finds the corpse of Ophelia and brings her back to the pond of the water nymphs. There Ophelia's soul is released, brought to life and she is given a choice between peaceful death or eternity as a nymph. As she remembers her rape and murder by a soldier, she chooses eternity and is transformed into a water nymph.

As a young traveler passes by the pond unaware, he is confronted by the new young water nymph. Ophelia realises she is now cursed to see the soldier in every man and the young traveler becomes her first victim.

The lack of lesbian role models in the media is a problem shared by young lesbians from all continents. Since the launch of the ANNE+ teaser the team has received reactions and interview requests from all over the world. This shows the importance of a series where homosexuality is not out of the ordinary, and just a part of one’s every day life.

We are proud to have ANNE+ team *TAKEOVER* Shortcutz on the day of the series TV première. We will talk to the team and check out their reaction watching the episodes on TV for the 1st time! Get ready and get to know: MAUD WIEMEIJER (Screenplay), VALERIE BISSCHEROUX (Director), LAURA BOUWMEESTER (Producer), and RENÉE JANSSEN (Executive Producer).

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

SPARK
Dominique Gimberg | Live-Action | 15:00

During an holiday with her best friend Julia, sixteen-year-old Emma finds out that she may feel more for Julia than just friendship.

ALL THE SINGLE LADIES!
Yfke van Berckelaer | Live-Action | 14:25

When her friend unpleasantly surprise her with a singles party, Tiek (Lisa Smit) feels like she just landed in her own personal hell. But then she meets the mysterious hobo Jip (Tomer Pawlicki) and the night suddenly takes an unexpected, Disneyesque turn.

Our special guest for this session is the award-winning producer LEONTINE PETIT. She has co-produced the acclaimed film ‘The Lobster’ directed by Yorgos Lanthimos and the well-received film, ‘Zama’ directed by Lucrecia Martel. Currently, Leontine is co-producing the biggest television series in the Netherlands, ‘Heirs of the Night’. We gotta say, she’s one of the coolest producers in Europe, join us at Shortcutz and meet her in person.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

HUGS AND HURRICANES

Diëgo Nurse | Live-Action | 15:00 | DUTCH PREMIERE

A personal portrait of the Director as a young father and filmmaker with ADHD, who through my anxiety was uncertain if I were the best suitable father for my 4-year-old adopted son Dennis with autism.

MISSED

Fokke Baarssen | Live-Action | 09:23 | PREMIERE

A diner on a dusty desert highway in the American Southwest seems an unlikely place to call neutral territory, but it's Graham’s last chance to try and reconnect with his estranged father, John. With John clinging ever more to his conservatism and the differences between father and son seemingly insurmountable, the stakes are high. Can they reconcile their differences and reconnect before it is too late

LOOK WHO’S IN TOWN! Film editor SCOTT STEVENSON has cut films such as: (everyone’s favourite) and Cesar-winner ‘La Haine’, Emmy-winner ‘Very Semi-Serious’. Most recently, "LA 92", this movie was honored with an Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking, as well as the Television Academy's Honors award, recognizing programs that have inspired social change. What an honour to have him at Shortcutz!

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

ANITA'S PACK
Marlies Smeenge | Documentary | 14:09
A portrait of dog breeder Anita who lives on her farm with her seventeen dogs. The house is about to become even fuller: her dog Raven is heavily pregnant. An empathetic film about the life of Anita and her unconditional love for her dogs, with an eye for the unique and quirky details in her everyday life.

THIRD WINDOW
Freek Henkes | Live-Action | 15:40 | PREMIERE
Third Window is a short Indonesian thriller film. It tells the story about a business man that gets caught between reality and a parallel universe.

SEPTEMBER WINNER: Screening and Announcement of our JURY TEAM favourite movie in September.

BAM! MICHIEL VAN ERP is our special guest this session. Remarkable documentary maker, BAFTA-nominee for RAMSES series and with his live-action feature debut he opens the Nederlands Film Festival. Let’s face it, it must be good to be Michiel and we will find out this and much more in this session.

We are also thrilled to welcome KLIK’s crew. One night before the starting of the festival at EYE, either lead programmer Tünde Vollenbroek or creative director, Aneta Ozorek (if we are really lucky both!) will join us to let us know more of this year’s edition. They will also bring this year’s trailer director: Mirjam Debets!  

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

MERC
Jacob Dijker | Live-Action | 02:20 | PREMIERE

A girl finds an old Mercedes and discovers the past life of the previous owner. She takes the car and finishes his journey.

WATCH OUT
Shariff Nasr | Live-Action | 06:00

Sometimes it is safer to be alone than to be looked after. Ayman pays an unexpected visit to his grandfather. But his grandfather doesn’t seem to be fully present.

NO SESSION on October 2nd. We will be at Nederlands Film Festival and we advise to do the same :)

Cinematographers and fellow film-geeks, you cannot miss this one! We are honoured to welcome as our special guest this session director/cinematographer  CLAIRE PIJMAN.  Claire Pijman worked as a cinematographer on feature films such as ‘Good Morning Karachi, by Sabiha Sumar, ‘Jermal’ by Ravi Bharwani, Wim Wenders' “Buena Vista Social club” among many others. Claire also directed ( and shot ) several documentaries amongst: ‘Later we care’, ‘Foot on the moon’, (on the set of ‘Dancer in the Dark’), ‘Talking Guitars’. Her most recent documentary is ‘Living the Light’-a film on Robby Müller premiered on September 4th at the 75th Venice Film festival's competition and it counts with testimonies of Jim Jarmusch, Lars von Trier among others.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

DRAW YOUR GUN
Wouter Jansen | Live-Action | 15:00 | PREMIERE

Enter the bleakest place in the ugly sad and forgotten sewers of the old west.
A ghost-town where the scent of anything good seems to be long gone.
When local artist Luc le Blanc draws the portrait of his enemy on a wanted poster, a chain reaction of killings and fraudulence is started.

HITCHCOCK HITCHCOCK
Kuba Szutkowski, Edgar Kapp | Live-Action | 08:00

The conflict between a shopkeeper and his mother escalates. There is violence he will regret. A naive passerby questions the tension using film references. A comic ode to suspense cinema.

This session is all about casting! Everything you ever wanted to know about casting you can ask this session to SUSANNE GROEN (Groen Casting), BERT VAN KRUIJSSEN (Van Kruijssen Casting), and MADELIEF BLANKEN (Jut & Jul Casting). Get those questions ready.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

HAPPY MIES DAY
Jasper Scholten | Live-Action | 06:49

Mies is turning twelve and everyone is invited. She has enough cake, the coolest playlist ever and all her girlfriends are coming. She thinks... But actually the party is being held on a dull campsite, her father has invited some old people, her girlfriends are not coming at all and there is too little cake. When the hunk of the campsite tells her that he is going to stop by the party, Mies decides to turn things around.

90 DEGREES
Jochem de Vet | Live-Action | 06:32

Machine over man, the thin line between passion and obsession.

We are honoured to welcome as our special guest this session NEDERLANDS FILMFESTIVAL'S: director SILVIA VAN DER HEIDEN and film & television programmer CLAIRE VAN DAAL. We are thrilled to find out more about the upcoming edition of NFF from 27 Sep until 5 Oct @ Utrecht. This is Silvia's first year as NFF's director, we are so looking forward to knowing her better and the new energy she added to this edition. One of this country's most respected film-programmer, Claire van Daal will also share her favourite things on this edition and she picked to screen at this session the graduation short film Dante vs. Mohammed Ali by Marc Wagenaar. 

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

WHO AM I?
Rose Hanawi | Documentary | 07:20 | PREMIERE

This film explores the feeling of identity and belonging from the point of view of the young generation of Dutch people whose parents come from a different culture.
The internal identity conflict affects a significant part of the new generations of the Western world and is of a growing nature due to the reality of emigration.

WORD!
Amos Mulder | Experimental | 07:00

Word! is a visual exploration of language set in a post-factual universe. It is a strangely disturbing animated short that short-circuits the rational mind by tapping into subliminal feelings of a parallel posthuman dimension in which words materialize as strange autonomous entities. Quotes in the form of tweets by famous philosophers and writers such as Ludwig Wittgenstein, Martin Heidegger, Samuel Beckett, and Lewis Carroll appear throughout the film. 

We will kickstart this season of Shortcutz with a TAKEOVER from the NETHERLANDS FILM ACADEMY - CLASS 2018. What drives them? How do they see their future? What's their contribution to Dutch film and much more? It's time to welcome director Carolien van Maaswaal (Zelf), director Daphne Lucker (Sisters), director Marc Wagenaar (Dante vs. Mohammed Ali), director Miriam Guttmann (Het Zaad van Karbaat), director Roy Seerden (At Midnight Plays A Dance-Tune), screenwriter Rosita Wolkers (Drift, Sisters) and director Vincent Tilanus (Bladgoud).

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

BLOODBURN
Jasper Bronkhorst | Live-Action | 06:55 | PREMIERE

What if someone commits a horrible crime and afterward gets promoted to a powerful position within the Department of Defense where he is legally untouchable? 

A DEATH IN THE FAMILY
Puck Litaay | Live-Action | 04:21

Media is a dominant force that can shape minds and perception, and as media becomes more intertwined in our everyday lives, it influences our thinking. What does a future look like when the way we consume media becomes more personal by the minute? 

This is our last session before our Summer Break in July and August. So after the screening of 'Face My Tribe', 'The Island' and the announcement and screening of our JURY TEAM favorite movie in June, we will dance!! Join us for our Summer Borrel and let's party!

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

FACE MY TRIBE ***** PREMIERE
Michael Zomer | Documentary | 04:00 

Take an exclusive look at the last generation face-tattooed women living in the remote mountain areas of Myanmar. An ethnographic short documentary that uncovers the story behind their face tattoos and reveals how these tribe still maintain their life like their ancestors lived.

THE ISLAND
Gonzalo Fernandez | Live-Action | 09:43

In an abandoned prison on an undetermined island, a mysterious prisoner and a wandering guard find themselves stuck together.

JUNE WINNER: Screening and Announcement of our JURY TEAM favourite movie in JUNE

Actor / Director RAYMI SAMBO will be our special guest this session. Raymi is getting ready to premiere his first feature film: Aan Niets Overleden (Died of Nothing), based on the theater play with the same title in July in Amsterdam. We will release the trailer of Aan Niets Overleden (Died of Nothing) this session!!! Raymi is also one of the most prominent voices pro-diversity and gay rights in the Dutch film scene.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

WINDOW TO THE WORLD ***** PREMIERE
Martijn Schinkel | Live-Action | 11:00 

Window to the world is a short film about a photojournalist Eva. How far will she go to get that perfect photo? A photo that perhaps can dominate the news channels she works for. In a war zone, journalist Otto, and photographer Eva flee into a building as it gets bombed. While Otto is fatally hit, Eva sees a little girl covered in dust. A perfect picture! Later, on her way to Otto's funeral she gets haunted by guilt.

EARTHLY POSSESSIONS
Sander Van Der Eijk | Documentary | 08:07

A pile of trash in the street, the last possessions of a neighbor that has passed away, is causing a commotion. Passersby add their discarded possessions, whilst others dig through the garbage in the hopes of finding an old chair or a vase to give a new lease on life. A camera silently follows this spectacle from a safe distance, providing a visual cross-section of our materialistic society.

British producer and Amsterdammer PAUL MILLER (aka R. Paul Miller) will be our special guest this session!! Paul's credits include movies such as' THE BIRDER’S GUIDE TO EVERYTHING', starring Ben Kingsley; 'SNOW ANGELS', directed by David Gordon Green and starring Kate Beckinsale; the Golden Globe-nominated, 'A LOVE SONG FOR BOBBY LONG' starring John Travolta and Scarlett Johansson; 'PROZAC NATION', directed by Erik Skjoldbaerg, starring Christina Ricci, Jessica Lange, and Michelle Williams; John Sayles’ Golden Globe-nominated 'MEN WITH GUNS' and the Academy Award-nominated 'LONE STAR'. 

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

THE GOLDEN SHOWER RESORT ***** PREMIERE
Kamiel Rongen | Experimental | 3:30   

These alien landscapes created in an aquarium contains more gold then most rappers have around their body.

ANNA BELLA
Kevin Jochems | Live-Action | 07:53

Detective Eddie Valentine falls in love with the beautiful young woman Anna Bella White. In the name of love, he is willing to do everything for her. Even murder.

This session our special guest is a producer who definitely knows how to spot talent! JULIUS PONTEN, produced movies such as WOLF (by Jim Taihuttu), RABAT (by Jim Taihuttu and Victor Ponten), both granted him a nomination for a Golden Calf (Dutch Oscar). In 2017, Julius was considered one of the most promising, up-and-coming European producers - “Producers on the Move’ at Cannes Film Festival. Julius is now getting ready to release Victor Ponten’s new feature CATACOMBE on September 13. He is currently working on Taihuttu's war epic THE EAST and Viktor van der Valk‘s feature debut NOCTURNE. So much to talk about...

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

OTHERLAND
Jan Pieter Tuinstra | Experimental | 13:30   

Vogue dancer Elvin Elejandro performs at a Voodoo Carnival Ball, an important dance contest where he will have to prove himself to be accepted by the local ballroom community. He remembers growing up on Sint Maarten and the changes he has been through since. The freedom he longed for seems within reach. The biographical story of Elvin Elejandro Martinez is told using documentary elements combined with fictional dance scenes.

THINK OF SOMETHING BLUE
Jerry de Mars | Live-Action | 06:23

Think of something blue is based on a Dutch poem by Martijn den Ouden. It portrays a man, dealing with loneliness and mourning, comforted by memories of his loved one. It is an ode to the color blue.

MAY WINNER: Screening and Announcement of our JURY TEAM favourite movie in MAY.

We are thrilled to welcome this session as our special guest Oscar-nominee, rockstar animator and Dutch proud PAUL DRIESSEN. We are also proud to screen his latest short film THE ORIGIN OF SOUND, co-directed with TOON LOENDERS.

MORE ABOUT PAUL:

In 1964, Paul Driessen started to animate commercials in Amsterdam. A few years later George Dunning invited him to work on THE YELLOW SUBMARINE in London, UK. In 1970 Paul Driessen emigrated to Canada and started a freelance animation career, producing most of his personal films for the National Film Board of Canada. Since 1976 he also animated and directed many of his films for independent producers in The Netherlands.
Of late his projects are also made with the support from Belgian and French production houses. Paul Driessen has won a great many international awards for his work.
His film 3MISSES earned him an Oscar nomination in 2000. From 1988 to 2005 Paul Driessen taught animation at the University of Kassel (DE).

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

UNCLOUD **** PREMIERE
Guillaume Versteeg | Experimental | 04:58    

Uncloud is an experimental short dance project, focusing on the connection between artists and audiences, creators and spectators, control and uprise. It's a surprising mix of sci-fi and dance elements, creating a mood piece that questions the nature of control as an audience.

NO ONE REALLY NO ONE LIKES THIS
Simone Peelen | Documentary | 15:00

Nobody prefers to not gain any likes for his or her Facebook message. Our visual culture reflects a fake reality in which perfection is the most important and everyone presents him- or herself in the best way. In this documentary people who are inside of this visual culture, respond to the phenomenon. Everything is possible, but the stakes are high; who fails, doesn't belong anymore. So you must be someone if you like it or not.

Exciting filmmaker DAVID VERBEEK will be our special guest this session. Just returned from China and with a new film coming up "An Impossibly Small Object", is about time to welcome David as our guest, the author of movies such as "Full Contact", "R U There" among many others. 

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

ROBERT MIMS THE TEXAN BULL RIDER
Doug Hancock | Documentary | 13:32 

After forty-three years riding bulls, Robert Mims is approaching retirement. Robert is one of the few competing black Texan riders and has become legendary among fellow riders for his wit and skill in this dangerous sport. 

HARD
Koen Feitsma | Live-Action | 12:00    

HARD is a short drama about Jason Weird, an up-and-coming DJ talent, who through his own actions, becomes hypersensitive to sound and is struggling with his career and the acceptance of his condition. HARD is about unbelief, fear for the future and perseverance not to give in to the disorder.

Shortcutz has started with the takeover sessions. We want to show you how a great team working, with all the people involved trying to excel themselves to make a project, can achieve great(er) things! The sooner you learn the magic of team leading and collaboration, the sooner you are on the right way to something remarkable. 

ZUIDAS  * TAKEOVER *
with AARON ROOKUS (director), NICOLE VAN KILSDONK (director), IDSE GROTENHUIS (producer), MENNO WESTENDORP (cinematographer), BOELIE VIS (editor and composer), BRAM SUIJKER (Actor), ROLINDE HOORNTJE (writer).

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

STEP BY STEP ***** PREMIÈRE
Hugo van Essen | Documentary | 07:42  

Jeroen reveals the difficulties of his handicap. Not only is he challenged physically in everyday life; his handicap also affects his emotional and social life. Despite being nearly blind, Jeroen is determined to pick up his life again. He does this by leading a group of blind runners called Running Blind. Together they prepare to run a marathon.

#YOLO4REAL
Aiman Hassani | Live-Action | 09:45    

Ahmed, our protagonist, is 21 years old when he receives the news that he is terminally ill. After a stage of denial, Ahmed tries to escape this horrible truth. 
Not until he hits rock bottom does he understand he needs to make the most of the time he has left. He blossoms, and decides to enjoy the remainder of his life, in part by checking boxes on his bucket list. As death nears, Ahmed starts living. 
Finally, he can reach out and embrace life, just when life is getting ready to let go of him. 

We are thrilled to welcome this session as our special guest director MARK VERKERK. Golden-calf winner Mark Verkerk is the director of many successful films such as 'Buddha's Lost Children', 'De Nieuwe Wildernis' and 'Holland, natuur in de delta'. His latest movie 'De Wilde Stad’ is now in cinemas across the country.

Amstelfilm has 5 double tickets to giveaway during the session to 'De Wilde Stad’!!!

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

GIRL ON A MISSION
Heleen D'Haens, Eva van Barneveld | Documentary | 15:57

Where Romanian Miruna (14) lives, it is never really quiet. Not outside, where the people yell and fight, and not at all indoors. Miruna has twelve brothers and sisters who she has to take care of: cooking, doing laundry and folding it, comforting… for Miruna it is a fact of life. She barely gets to do her homework and whenever she wants to study, she will have to do this in the midst of playing and fighting children.

SMALL ADVENTURES
Casper Lambeck | Experimental | 10:05

A space adventurer coping with his midlife crisis on the ​​​​​​​faraway planet of Texel.

APRIL WINNER: Screening and Announcement of our JURY TEAM favorite movie in APRIL.

A bunch of directors-rockstars will takeover this session. From VAN GOD LOS TV series we will welcome 5 of the 6 directors of the 4th season of the hit TV series. Get ready for a super session with AARON ROOKUS, EDDY TERSTALL, GIANCARLO SANCHEZ, MICHIEL TEN HORN and TOMAS KAAN ... and when you think "things can't get any better", we are thrilled to announce that series' creator PIETER KUIJPERS will co-host this Q&A and make all the clever questions of the evening!

* TOMAS KAAN is in the middle of a really demanding project. His attendance is still not 100% confirmed. Please understand: if duty calls, "a director's gotta do what a director's gotta do”.

In our Official Selection, you can watch and meet the teams of:

DYING LIGHT
Jim de Klerk | Fiction | 11:09 minutes

Dying Light is a psychological thriller about a visually impaired woman who's afraid of the dark. She has to overcome her fear to escape the darkness that has entered her house.

HEADBUTT
Daan Bunnik | Fiction | 9:11 minutes

Headbutt portrays the desire of Tobias (15) to restore the old relationship he had with his brother Lucas (18). While they used to do everything together, Lucas now has no interest in his younger brother anymore. When Tobias fantasizes that Lucas will commit suicide, Tobias has no other option than to restore the relationship with his isolated brother.

We are thrilled to welcome this session as our special guest actress EVA VAN DE WIJDEVEN. Eva is one of the most beloved Dutch actresses and definitely one of the coolest.  She has been stunning us in Cinema, TV, and theatre and we are really looking forward to knowing more about this witty lady, her career and her vision.

In our Official Selection, and can watch and meet the teams of:

SEISMOS
Zaide Bil-Chand | Documentary | 9:57 minutes

An experimental documentary about the effects of the earthquakes on the people, the buildings and the time in the earthquake area in the north of the Netherlands.

SJAAK'S WIFE DIED, SO HE HAS TO SAY SOMETHING
Eva M.C. Zanen | Fiction | 11:35 minutes

76-year-old Sjaak is heartbroken; his wife died. He tries to write a speech for his recently deceased wife, but he is only capable of writing starters. While the ceremony begins, Sjaak is postponing the speech. He has to find the true way to say goodbye to his great love.

This session will be dedicated to IMAGINE FILM FESTIVAL. For over thirty years Imagine Film Festival has been the number one festival homaging fantastic film in The Netherlands. Festival director CHRIS OOSTEROM will join us to let us know more about this edition and co-host the Q&A with directors JAVIER RAO (AR) and MARLYN KIST DE RUIJTER (NL), in highlight in this year's programme.

In our Official Selection, and can watch and meet the teams of:

BEI MIR BIST DU SCHÖN
Bouwine Pool | Animation | 12:00 minutes

A sweet granny is looking forward to her granddaughter’s visit. But when the little girl arrives, the feeling is not mutual. Before the visit is over, granny must try to create the warm bond with her grandchild she desires so deeply.

NIGHTSHADE
Shady El-Hamus | Fiction | 14:25 minutes

Tarik (11) helps his father Elias (35) to transport illegal immigrants into the Netherlands. Once the refugees have been dropped off at an industrial estate, Tarik and Elias load them into the back of their white minivan and begin their long, night-time journey back across the border.

Look who's in town! ROEL REINE is our special guest this session. Roel Reine is known by fans, critics, and Hollywood studios as one of the best modern action directors around today. Roel Reine also directed some episodes for TV series such as ‘Black Sails’ for STARZ, ‘Blood Drive’ for Syfy and 'Marvel’s Inhumans’ for MARVEL. Roel is currently finishing his upcoming movie REDBAD, to be premiered in June, and he will show us a lot of cool behind-the-scenes and other secret stuff. Get ready for a masterclass on 'epic filmmaking' on a shoestring. 

In our Official Selection, and can watch and meet the teams of:

SAND
Arjan Brentjes | Animation | 4:48 minutes

You get up at five, eat your vitamins, take some water with your coffee, work for a few hours, eat your omegas and flavonoids, work a little more, get some exercise and then take a shower. But don’t bother trying to wash the sand out of your hair.

PIZZAMONSTER
Kurt Platvoet | Fiction | 12:00 minutes

From the tears of his unanswered love and a pile of uneaten pizza a monster rises, for Leon to take care of.

MARCH WINNER: Screening and Announcement of our JURY TEAM favorite movie in MARCH.

Our special guest this session is director NANOUK LEOPOLD, one of the Netherlands Best Directors, who has just returned from Berlinale where she premiered her upcoming movie COBAIN. Cobain will hit Dutch cinema on April 5th and you have the chance to know more about it beforehand, of course! ;) 

In our Official Selection, and can watch and meet the teams of:

MA'MAQUEEN
Esmée van Loon | Documentary | 15:00 minutes

In this short documentary, the viewer gets a very intimate look at the life of the fashionable Dennis Bijleveld: optimist, fashion designer and drag queen. He takes us on a journey through his desires and fears and tells us what it’s like to live in a pigeonholed society. Dennis doesn’t belong with them, he acts to his feelings and is beginning to feel freer. Ma’MaQueen is a film from an observational perspective in which we see a young person addressing some sensitive issues. 

HATE FOR SALE
Anna Eijsbouts | Animation | 2:39 minutes

We live in a world in which we consume hate as much as we are consumed by it. This film examines the alluring and tempting qualities of this devouring emotion and why we keep buying into it. 

Our special guest for this session is MEA DOLS DE JONG. Mea Dols de Jong received worldwide critical acclaim for her graduation film IF MAMA AIN’T HAPPY NOBODY’S HAPPY which has won 27 (international) awards. In 2016, Mea was named one of the “Top 10 Europeans to Watch” by Variety and listed by leading Dutch newspaper NRC as one of 100 most influential people in the Dutch Cultural sector.

In our Official Selection, and can watch and meet the teams of:

LITTLE SHIT **** DUTCH PREMIERE
Richard Gorodecky | Fiction | 14:00 minutes

Paul has an attitude. He’s the kid you cross the road to avoid. The no-hoper you pray your children never become. But there’s more to Paul than meets the eye or the ear. A side that he only finds when he’s truly lost. 
Little Shit is a child’s journey to discover his and London’s hidden nature.

DEEP
Michelle Verhoeks | Experimental | 4:00 minutes

‘Deep’ shows an inner journey of a woman. In a surrealistic ocean, she explores her sexuality. Her body is an expression of the soul that reveals and merges in the poetic surroundings.

In our OPEN MIC (a spot dedicated to our community), you can hear more about the Crowdfunding campaign of THE SALMON AND YOU. A short film directed by Raynor Arkenbout.

Our special guest this session is producer ELS VANDEVORST! Els has (co)produced movies for acclaimed directors such as Lars von Trier, Alexander Sokurov, Thomas Vinterberg, Martin Koolhoven, Stijn Coninx, and most recently, Brian de Palma.

In our Official Selection, and can watch and meet the teams of:

THE 5TH DIMENSION
Gary Nurse | Experimental | 15:00 minutes

It's 2050 and Sue, a widow bored with life, finds herself trapped within the realms of the mundane. Repetition takes precedence and a chronic desperation for change plagues her psyche. 

MACHO
Cyriel Guds | Fiction | 9:48 minutes

A sensitive young boy learns to survive in a macho culture where you get laughed and bullied when you cry. 
20 years later when he is 26 he isn't that sensitive anymore and has changed into a true 'Alpha Man' dominating other men and treating women like a foot sweep. His environment has turned him into a monster, or does he thank this to himself?

In our OPEN MIC (a spot dedicated to our community), we will premiere the trailer for the low-budget feature film THE BALKAN CONNECTION and meet the team behind it. 

WE ARE BACK! We will kickstart 2018 season with actress JOHANNA TER STEEGE (Spoorloos, Paradise Road) as our special guest! For the last twelve years, Johanna has travelled all over the world, acting in different languages and working with renowned directors, such as Robert Altman, István Szabó, Heddy Honigmann, Bruce Beresford among many others. Johanna has also worked with actors such as Gary Oldman, Glenn Close, Frances McDormand, Isabella Rossellini and Tim Roth.

In our Official Selection, and can watch and meet the teams of:

I CAN FLY
Ruwan Heggelman | Fiction | 7:54 minutes

The 22-year-old Lisa is approached on the street by the 23-year-old Sven, after a flirt and a joke, Sven asks Lisa the question: Do you believe that I can fly?

BULLET TIME
Frodo Kuipers | Animation | 5:30 minutes

A desolate street in a small village in the Old West. Two cowboys face each other in a good-old-fashioned shootout!
But when both of the colts fire their deadly bullets, those bullets immediately fall in love with each other, forgetting what they're supposed to do! This has dramatic consequences...

#FreeEvent On May 5th, acting school faaam will meet Shortcutz for an event with short films, talks, new acting talent, and BORREL. Emerging and 'emerged' film talent celebrating together <3

Click on the picture for more info about the PROGRAMME.