Discoveries from Netherlands World Cinema

In 1998 Raymond van Barneveld single-handedly put darts on the map in the Netherlands. For years he kept millions of Dutch people glued to the TV around Christmas and grew into a phenomenon. At the upcoming World Cup, he will say goodbye to darts after a legendary career. With five world titles and an army of fans, the darts world is losing an icon that changed the sport forever.

an invincible action hero is thwarted by an unlikely duo.

Andre Rieu performs a diverse array of tunes originally performed by Strauss, Glenn Miller and The Andrews Sisters, as well as standards such as "Stars and Stripes Forever" and "Auld Lang Syne." Filmed on New Years Eve in London, this is a moving document of a stunning performance.Track List:

A 7-year old girl is taken to school by her mother. Today is the day that the young girl will go on a school trip with her class. In everything we feel that bringing her daughter to school isn’t a very ordinary occasion for the mother.

Reporter Nicolaas Veul decides to set up his first Instagram account and accumulate as many followers as possible. Over time, he becomes more interested in the social network's inner workings and uncovers a well-oiled machine based on fraud. While users enthusiastically give likes to selfies, a brisk business with user accounts is underway behind the scenes. There are huge numbers of fake profiles, and internet bots are producing new followers for those who want to feel more successful. Can anything on Instagram be believed?

Ambitious Cape Verdean medical student Artur struggles with his responsibilities.

Comedy about actor Joel Palsma who struggles through life working in commercials and small roles in plays and also has a complicated love life.

Eleven-year-old Nola is doing her best to save money so that her grandmother can travel to Suriname to scatter her late grandfather's ashes, but plane tickets are expensive and saving up takes a long time. When Nola finds a bag of stolen money, she puts aside her conscience and decides to keep the loot. After all, it's for a good cause. But whether that's a wise decision.

Sint and his mischievous assistant Zwarte Piet enjoy collecting children's letters at night, but lose a whole bag.

A suffocating blanket of boredom hangs over the Swiss town where friends Heidi and Milena live. Heidi wants to study medicine after the summer holidays, while Milena is more of an adventurer. For her, the future is a question mark. Milena's only wish seems to be to be close to Heidi. When their plans to move in together are called off at the last minute, their safe world begins to show cracks. The tension between the two becomes increasingly difficult to interpret. Is it friendship, infatuation, or love?

Anny helps Mario escape from prison after his attempted murder of Gaston de Roqueville, who is now married to Ninette. Banker Sorga, an enemy spy, attempts to steal Mario's latest invention: a powerful explosive that could alter the course of the war. Second part of Maurits Binger's epic trilogy, now considered lost.

In 2025, Bankzitters reach an unprecedented high: three sold-out shows in the Ziggo Dome. Feel the energy on stage, the chaos backstage and the friendship that made it all possible. They themselves can hardly comprehend how this happened, but one thing is certain: they are doing something right.

The small business of the De Sterke family is threatened when their ever-expanding neighbour, department store 'The Rising Sun', starts taking away their customers.

In this short 20 minute black and white Belgian documentary, the director, Paul Haesaerts, visualised Pablo Picasso’s flow of imagination when the Spanish painter drew on large glass plates in front of the camera – like a live show of a greatest artist in performing a few masterstrokes that outlines a dove, bull, flower, man or woman and whatnot. (This technique of filming his painting from the other side of the glass plates precedes The Mystery of Picasso (1956), another famous documentary film on Picasso). (via http://www.kubrickians.com/2012/07/08/visite-picasso-1949-paul-haesaert/)

Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!: The Rolling Stones in Concert is the second live album by the Rolling Stones, released on 4 September 1970 in the UK and the United States. It was recorded in New York City and Baltimore in November 1969 prior to the release of Let It Bleed.

A portrait of the belgian writer Herman Teirlinck by Henri Storck.

In 1975, his graduation year at the Film Academy, director Gerrit van Elst captured his relationship with his father and mother and how they opposed their only child’s decision to go and study in faraway Amsterdam. Twenty-nine years later, he and his camera crew are back at his - now seriously infirm - parents. For this film, Van Elst cross-edited the footage of then and now. A revealing observation of growing old and approaching death.

For more than 100 years, Dik Trom has captured the imagination with his mischief. Together with his friends Piet van Dril and Jan Vos, it is mainly constable Flipsen who has to suffer. But the strict teacher is also a grateful subject for his typically Dutch pranks. And for some reason, Dik always gets away with it. Like the time Dik and his friends drove Flipsen crazy by constantly tapping on his window. During the chase, Flipsen catches one of the rascals. But not Dik...no, the beating goes to Dik's biggest tormentor, Bruin Boon. Still, Dik Trom proves he has a heart of gold. Because when he follows Aunt Kee, who is considered a witch by the whole village, to her cottage and discovers what is troubling her, he shows why he is such a special boy. And he is!

‘Woman is Fickle’ is based on the famous aria from the opera Rigoletto by Verdi. No woman is safe from the dissolute Duke of Mantua, who dreams of naked, languid beauties. But he also complains about their capriciousness. The women in the film refer to famous paintings: by Matisse, Botticelli, Degas. The film is a trip through male fantasies, seen through the eyes of a woman.

She is a quick-tempered and feisty Turkish woman; he, a shy and reticent, young Flemish man. Their respective families hold strong – perhaps too strong – opinions on the imminent marriage, and, on the big day, chaos ensues, making the young couple question their own readiness to commit to a union for life. Are their backgrounds really so different to tear them apart?

Short film in which Dutch author Simon Carmiggelt visits the hairdresser.

Writer and rapper Sticks (Junte Uiterwijk, 1982) is one of the most influential and successful artists in the Netherlands. Over the past twenty years, Sticks has released more than 13 albums as a solo artist and in a group - including with Opgezwolle and the Fakkebrigade. To find out what lies behind Sticks' inexhaustible urge to create, documentary maker Matthijs van Camerijk decides to follow the Zwolle resident for two years. It appears to be a period in which Sticks impressively expands his impressive oeuvre, with four new projects.

Registration of the seventh solo show by the Dutch comedian Pieter Derks.

Mack is a 8 year old streetwise boy wants to win all the time. With his mirrored heart he has to perform on the motorcrosstrack while death watches him from all corners.

Step into a world where reality fractures and morality teeters on the edge. Crime and Punishment is an experimental, neo-surrealistic psychological thriller that confronts the void within, exploring themes of existential dread, guilt, and the peril of abandoning conscience. Crafted entirely by a singular vision, this film blends haunting imagery, symbolic narratives, and a grim aesthetic to immerse the viewer in a journey both unsettling and mesmerizing. Prepare to question what is real, what is right, and what lies beneath the surface of your own mind.

When Elena suspects her charming husband is hiding a dark secret, she invites her best friends over for dinner and recruits them to help uncover the truth.

Daan van Citters and Joenoes Polnaija retrace the footsteps of their grandfathers in Indonesia. They both fought for the Netherlands against Indonesian independence: Daan’s grandfather went voluntarily from the Netherlands, Joenoes’s as a Moluccan soldier in the Dutch colonial army, KNIL. Their poignant journey forces them to ask themselves some difficult questions about guilt, shame and transgenerational transmission.

The Aunt of Charlie has managed to captivate a large audience worldwide. In the Dutch adaptation of Brondon Thomas's play, the household butler (Jon van Eerd) is persuaded to impersonate the aunt. Whether the butler likes it or not, he must navigate life as a woman. This sets off a series of hilarious events. For Jon van Eerd, it's another golden opportunity to make you burst into laughter. The Aunt of Charlie is a classic in the farce genre and according to many, the best piece ever written by Brandon Thomas (1857-1914).

A young teenager tries to come to terms with his father's suicide. Little does he know that the answer lies closer than he thinks.

In a desolate landscape a disillusioned artist meets a sober geologist, and quickly they form a strong connection. Their lives seem temporarily idyllic until the real world sticks its head up again.

Axelle, a young, promising tennis player is left in increasing desperation when she learns that Jeremy, her attentive coach, remains detained for further questioning.

Eight-year-old Blanco unsuccessfully tries to reconcile his arguing family members by trying out all the possible ‘secret power trics’ he taught himself. The biggest trick however is that he finally decides to stop looking after other people.

Joz, a young police officer in Rotterdam, is assigned by his boss Lisa to investigate the murder of a prostitute named Maria. During his investigation, he meets Carmen. He falls so deeply in love with her that he breaks up with his fiancée Maryam. However, Carmen is indifferent to this, as she does not want to commit herself. Joz's work also suffers as a result, and he is suspended, with Simon taking over the case. Nevertheless, Joz continues his investigation. He discovers that Carmen's brother Steve, who has been arrested, is innocent, and frees him. Out of jealousy, he attacks Carmen. Carmen's friends arrange for Joz and Steve to flee abroad. Ultimately, it turns out that Lisa committed the murder because her husband Koen (Kurt Rogiers) had been a client of Maria's. She shoots Joz.

Dutch musician and rapper Joost Klein's live performance at Lowlands Festival on August 18, 2023 in Biddinghuizen, The Netherlands.

Two detectives, Rashad and Safiya, have been sent to investigate a crime scene. While Rashad unsuspectingly searches through rooms, the investigation takes a turn for Safiya when she discovers that she knows the victim.

Feature film about a filmmaker who wants to make a documentary about the life of Hungarian director Mykosch. Using images from films he made in the past, the Hungarian tells about his experiences as a resistance fighter, refugee and bohemian. The documentary maker is fascinated by Mykosch's story but finds it increasingly difficult to distinguish between film and reality. The Hungarian lies without batting an eyelid, tells real and fake stories with the same charm and builds up theories, only to ridicule them. In the editing room, Mykosch finishes his latest film. He can't decide when to let the protagonist die. Then the documentary maker realizes that the death of the character will also mean the end of Mykosch.

Stand up comedy performance of Lara Ricote's show "Little Tiny Wet Show (baptism)"

At the invitation of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Dutch conductor Jules Coulée returns to the Netherlands to conduct a one-off performance of Third Symphony by Gustav Mahler. Coulée is unpleasantly surprised when he sees that the Concertgebouw is under construction and that the renovations continue during rehearsals. In addition, the acoustics of the hall are terribly bad and the balcony too close, so that the post horn solo in the third movement cannot possibly come from afar, as the score prescribes. For Coulée, the entire implementation stands or falls with this detail.

"Till I Return" follows the adventures of a young man who has to leave for the front in twenty-four hours. The story takes place in the near future

Artist Katinka Simonse, alias Tinkebell, is a controversial, very mediagenic phenomenon. In her universe there is no distinction between life, art and activism; Tinkebell is her own work of art. Everything she encounters on her life path can become part of her story. Filmmaker Judith de Leeuw was given access to all images about Tinkebell, including her entire private archive. She thus constructed an archive film about how as a human being, living on the ruins of the past, you can be a character in your own story. What is the price you can afford if you continue to believe at any cost?

A young aggressive man from a small town goes to Amsterdam. He attacks several people, finds a girlfriend and takes her back home. Because of his misbehavior, this friendship ends soon afterwards.

A police-officer and his girlfriend struggle with their boundaries and self-control, in a relationship far more complex than meets the eye.

Kurdish Iranian filmmaker Beri Shalmashi travels from the Netherlands to the border with Iran in Iraqi Kurdistan, where she encounters activists who participated in the protests that were sparked by the death of Jina Amini in Tehran in September 2022. She explores first hand accounts of the current uprising and life as a Kurdish person under the oppressive Islamic regime. What is boiling at the edge of the revolution?

Four good friends, all seventeen-year old, lose their innocence during their last summer together. Flanders 1996. Rik, Tim, Roel and Bart aimlessly wile away the summer days in a small village where nothing exciting ever happens. When Rik becomes fascinated by the mysterious Sandrine, the boy's friendship comes under increasing pressure. Their reckless behaviour lands the boys in a web of intrigue, which they have a hard time escaping from.

The film Sugnu Sicilianu unfolds like a series of flashbacks through time, connecting memory and dreams. This film is a journey through inheritance, where histories are both confronted and reshaped. Sugnu Sicilianu questions heritage, family, and identity through a return to the places that once tied me and my family to our roots.

A short film by director Stephan Brenninkmeijer, made for 48 hour film project Amsterdam 2014. Julia Mendez is caught whilst photographing a German training area. Will she withstand the brutal torture or betray her fellow resistance fighters?

Nine year-old Thomas spends most of his days at the flea market closely observing the Wheeling's and dealings of the market's sellers . His desire to be one of them leads him to embark on a one-night adventure that overwhelms him.

A secret society kidnaps a man to force his sister to steal plans.

Photofilm about a journalist of a local newspaper who feels his life has come to a standstill, until he discovers a conspiracy of mediocrity...

Sandman, with his magical sleep sand, brings beautiful dreams to children all over the world, including in the Fairy Tale Forest. But lately, it seems like the sleep sand is not working anymore. Frog Princess Anura dreams of a golden ball, Little Red Riding Hood takes cookies to Grandma, and Hansel and Gretel nibble on the candy house. But one night, their dreams are not so pleasant anymore. Sandman is puzzled and immediately sets out to investigate.

Registration of the Dutch musical. The musical focuses on the life and work of Dutch singer and comedian Wim Sonneveld, from the moment he meets his first life partner Huub until his sudden death in 1974. His love for theatre, his two life partners and the bond with Conny Stuart are highlighted.

The vagrant Noel is immortal and doomed to roam the world from the Stone Age to the present day.

John Van Laer is the overseer of a vast rubber plantation in the Dutch East Indies. His new wife Renee joins him at the plantation, but the monotony of her existence and unbearable heat soon drive her to distraction. One of Van Laer's workmen takes advantage of the boss' absence to seduce Renee.

Edward Monskii, is in a very bad shape, and Botter Gaarman, obviously tired, are in the terrace of a coffee of a Mediterranean city, ready for a long time prepared mission. When a quite old man, Ernest Carpentier, joined their table, the situation becomes tense and dangerous.