Discoveries from Netherlands World Cinema

“Imagine this camera is your mother”, a father tells his daughter. In the 1990s, scores of families from the Republic of Moldova began a ritualised mail exchange between the mothers, who had emigrated for economic reasons, and their relatives back home. The former sent money and goods; the latter sent videotapes. These amateur recordings are the material of this film. They testify to the painful gaps the absent persons left in the lives of those who stayed behind.

Flash projection from dutch visual artist Han Hoggerbrugge

Due to problems, Gelder's small plantation is dwindling. So in order to support his son's education in Holland, Gelder falls into the hands of a loan shark. Tragedy strikes when his son Bob passes away. Henk, Bob’s colleague from the university, promises to help Gelder's family after Bob is gone. Henk then stays at Gelder's house and marries Daisy - Bob’s sister. But the marriage fails as Daisy seems to be too busy with attending dance invitations. Meanwhile, Flora, Henk’s niece seems to care more about Baby, - Henk and Daisy's child. Daisy feels jealous and goes to Wijnkoopbai (Pelabuhan Ratu), to commit suicide. But just when Henk is about to marry Flora, Daisy decides against her suicidal plan and returns home. With the marriage cancelled, Flora dedicates herself to the church and becomes Sister Theresia.

The landscape in which we live has been around longer than we have. And it will still be there after our death. Not that the landscape always remains the same: every generation wipes out the traces of previous generations, and itself leaves new traces behind. This process has been followed for seven years with great detail, craftsmanship and without misplaced nostalgia on Super16 by Eugenie Jansen and Albert Elings. On the banks of the Netherrhine River, between the dike and the river itself, is a stretch of water meadow, Loowaard. In the derelict farmstead lives the last farmer who had cows here, there are remains of a brick factory that no longer has a function, and in the ground, remains have been found of an old Roman encampment. Until recently, the march of progress apparently had left this piece of land untouched. But now the meadows have to make way for the development of new nature.

The largest post-war industrial disaster in the Netherlands takes place on 13 May 2000 - fireworks storage S.E. explodes in Enschede. Firework. Many people are injured, a residential area is wiped out and 23 people die. How could such a disaster take place in a tightly organized country like the Netherlands? In De Waarheid, average in-depth interviews, zoom in on the decisions and behavior of those involved around the fireworks disaster in Enschede, in order to reveal the ones that provide insight into how this fragile balance manifests itself. Via the owner of the fireworks storage, an involved firefighter and the licensing municipal officials and the mayor, we reach the leader of the investigation commission, the chief public prosecutor and the minister of the interior who had to deal with the disaster. After all, it is the citizen whose house is destroyed who appeals to common sense.

In this film a man, after retiring, wants to return to the Caribbean island where he once lived. However, advancing dementia ruins his idyllic plans. He moves there but never really arrives.

Come with me to a fairytale world where Puss in Boots shows how he ended up with a poor miller's son. The two become friends, and the cat promises the miller's son everything he could wish for. The only thing the cat asks for in return are clothes and leather boots. What could Puss in Boots be planning? Will he keep his promise? Or will this story take a different turn?

"Men and women, face pressed against the wall, go sideways, step by step. They can not possibly cross the street." - kortfilmfestival

Linda, a young woman from Budapest, moves to Amsterdam for her studies. Through the lens of two towering cranes visible from her apartment, she chronicles her adaptation to a new city, the evolution of her identity as a filmmaker, and her growing sense of belonging. Over the course of a year, the cranes become symbols of both stability and transformation, while also reminding her of the complexities of having two countries to call home simultaneously. As Linda's studies conclude and she faces the prospect of returning to Hungary, the cranes echo the closing of this chapter in an increasingly symbolic manner.

"A BLACK JOY PREQUEL, is a captivating short film, serving as the prequel to the acclaimed "Black Joy (Blaka Koloku)." Follow the filmmaker Rafik as they for the first time venture into the heart of Amsterdam, unveiling the beauty in life's simplest moments. This first installment focuses on the intersections of Black bodies in public spaces, shedding light on the collective experiences of Black trans and queer individuals, celebrating their universal journey."

Starting from a picture of her apartment in Kyiv, filmmaker Mariia Ponomarova remembers the life she has lived there. In three conversations with her mother and her friends, they reminisce about sleepovers, the view from the window and drunken nights on the rooftop. Through these memories, she begins to reclaim the image of her home.

Short documentary on the Ladakh.region.

NSB propaganda film showing footage of the first Hagespraak organized by the NSB in Lunteren. Participants from all over the country arrive in Lunteren by bicycle, car, or bus. Participants from Rotterdam and The Hague arrive by ship in Rhenen and proceed from there to Lunteren. Various people arrive in the traditional costume of their region. At the large gatherings, Mussert and Van Geelkerken give a speech. Afterwards, there is a picnic and beer is drunk. Probably an amateur film.

Six intertwined stories delve into social and political dilemmas in Dutch society surrounding a cluster of millennials.

Part of a series of found landscapes, filmed on a single 8mm roll.

The lore between jezus vijf and dipti finally explained.

The film is about how humans behave differently in different contexts. It depicts the everyday life of a couple at work, together and alone, where they can express themselves fully without being constrained by other people, social norms, and society.

In Bahia (Brazil), the filmmaker reflects on different modes of getting lost: in the wilderness, in madness, in the ecstasies of love making. Losing yourself, he finds, is a script for misfits, heretics, perverts. People in need of a world that is larger than the one they know. People like himself.

On a pale green, gray, dark and green-toned trail, a small, young wild bird wanders through the wilderness and tries to find its way to the shore. A metaphor for the loss of one's fantasies in the overcoming of games for the return trip. Short animated film inspired by the classic short film Crin-blanc by Albert Lamorisse since 1953.

A young man has been accused of theft. We see him behind barbed wire, falling in slow motion onto the grass. The artist Ansuya Blom alternates this powerful image and others that she shot in Suriname, such as a group of pelicans screeching around a fishing boat in Paramaribo, with 8 mm recordings of a first communion procession from her family archive.

Although Grandpa Calle is no longer alive, his buildings remain open to his grandson's curiosity.

A promotional film made by the Catholic mission, about the populations on the islands of Bali, Flores, and Timor in the Dutch East Indies, and also about the activities of the mission in the fields of medical care and education.

Middle part of a safe sex trilogy.

The video is an investigation into the archeology of obsolete special effects. It is set in an artificial world inspired by science fiction low budget movies, cult TV series, and Hollywood classics from the 70s and 80s. The consolidated visual metaphor of the cave is used in order to make the viewer transition between two realities. Once on the other side, we meet a fictional character, an old talking rock that lives in a cavern. The rock is musing on all the films seen and that have shaped its own memories.

During the Second World War, three Jewish couples from Rotterdam spent years in hiding in the Breeplein Church. A special story about courage, hope and confidence, which was forgotten for years.

This documentary shows how a project aimed at curbing small arms and light weapons contributes to the establishment of peace and stability in Cambodia. It also shows the obstacles which are met during the implementation of the project, especially regarding the collection of weapons among the population in exchange for development projects, followed by the public destruction of these weapons.

A casket is carried outside. The men’s choir and the harmony singers walk along in the funeral procession. Finally there is the arrival at the Kapperlaan, and the leaving for the cemetery. We mainly see images of the funeral procession: many men pass before the camera, most of them clergy; Cardinal van Rossum also appears in the picture. We also see images of the casket.

Dam Square in Amsterdam, bustling with pedestrians and horse trams.

The Yazidi girls were often just teenagers when they were abducted from their villages in the mountains of Kurdistan by fighters of the Islamic State. They were forced to convert to Islam and were sold as sex slaves to terrorists. Now that the survivors have returned to their homeland, the question arises as to whether they will be able to start anew. Theatre-maker Hussein is trying to help them find a new life.

Nadine van Loon's documentary debut 'Notes from Brussels' follows three women and their drive to keep ahead in Brussels' fast-paced institutions as they pursue their European dream.

Short Dutch animation film.

During a nightly journey teenagers share their experience with domestic violence and how this has defined their image of love, intimacy and parenthood. Associative images show the adolescents painful memories and a turning point to another life.

People detained under hospital orders work hard to return to society. Participating in a theatre project helps, but can also cause tension. Is it possible to leave your demons behind, or will they always remain with you?

Documentary.

Lize Korpershoek investigates why her desire for sex within her relationships always disappears after the first infatuation. Is love sustainable without sex? And why do we find sex so important?

The effect of language use on homosexuals in the Netherlands.

In Endtrip we enter the mind of a drug overdosed girl and go on a journey through her subconsciousness.