Two Feature Films in the Official Selection

The Dutch feature film The North, directed by Bart Schrijver, is included in the prestigious list of European feature films. The film was independently produced by Tuesday Studio and is internationally represented by Incredible Film.

The North follows two old friends, Chris (Bart Harder) and Lluis (Carles Pulido), who reunite after ten years to embark on a 600-kilometre hike through the Scottish Highlands. Following the West Highland Way and the Cape Wrath Trail, they spend thirty days together in nature, hoping to rekindle their once-powerful friendship. Set against the pace and demands of long-distance hiking, The North depicts the intricacies and challenges of both friendship and internal human struggles against the backdrop of the beautifully stark Highlands’ wilderness, delivering an unforgettable tale of friendship, endurance, and self-discovery.

Following its theatrical release in the Netherlands earlier this year, The North attracted an audience of over 100,000 and ranked 9th in the national box office — a rare achievement for a fully independently produced film with a small budget.The film was made with a crew of eight people who walked 300 kilometers through the Scottish Highlands during filming. They slept in tents, carried 30-kilogram backpacks, and created the film in nature. In addition to the sale to Tull Stories for the UK and Ireland and Gusto for the Netherlands, The North has also been sold to Limelight Distribution for New Zealand and Australia, Lumière in Belgium and Polyfilm in Austria.

Also selected is the minority co-production Two Prosecutors*, directed by internationally acclaimed director Sergei Loznitsa, with Atoms & Void as the Dutch co-producer. Worldwide sales are handled by SBS International and Coproduction Office. The film premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival and was also selected for festivals including Karlovy Vary and the Chicago International Film Festival.

Set in the Soviet Union of 1937, Two Prosecutors follows a young law graduate who confronts the harsh realities of Stalinism during his first assignment. The film is based on a story by Georgy Demidov, a Russian scientist and writer who spent many years in the Gulag.

Three Documentaries in the Official Selection

Monica Strømdahl’s feature documentary Flophouse America* (Dutch co-producer Basalt Film) is also included in the shortlist. It recounts the story of a 12-year-old boy who defies his parents' alcohol abuse and finds glimmers of hope in an unexpected tragedy, in a heartbreaking film from the desperate flip side of America.

It celebrated its world premiere earlier this year at CPH:DOX where it received a DOX:Award Special Mention, followed by selections for among others Visions du Réel, Movies that Matter, Jih.lava IDFF and Biografilm where it won the Hera “Nuovi Talenti” Award. Sales agent Lightdox is in charge of its international rights.

Furthermore Memory*, Dutch minority coproduced documentary by Revolver, is also selected. Director Vladlena Sandu, a survivor of the war in Chechnya, studies her traumatic memories in order to transcend and transform them via cinema.

It was selected as the opening film of the Venice Giornate degli Autori (Venice Days), where it had its world premiere. World sales are represented by Loco Films.

Kouté Vwa* by Maxime Jean-Baptiste has also been shortlisted for the European Film Awards. The project, which was produced in Belgium, France and French Guiana, received funding from New Dawn.

Four Dutch Short Films shortlisted

The Netherlands is also well represented in the short film category. Four short films with Dutch (co-)producers have been selected as candidates for the EFA Short Film Prix Vimeo, the candidates are proposed by partner festivals of the European Film Academy: City of Poets* by Sara Rajaei (producer: near/by film), candidate of Winterthur Short Film Festival; I Believe the Portrait Saved Me by Alban Muja (Dutch co-producer: Asfalt Films), candidate of Short Film Festival Hamburg; Grandmamauntsistercat* by Zuza Banasińska, candidate of Uppsala Short Film Festival and looking she said I forget* by Naomi Pacifique (Dutch co-producer: Idle Eye), candidate of International Short Film Festival Cyprus.

On the 30th of October 2025 the five nominated short films for the EFA Short Film Prix Vimeo will be announced.

The European Film Awards are organized annually by the European Film Academy and honor the best of European cinema. The ceremony will take place on 17 January 2026 in Berlin.

*film supported by the Netherlands Film Fund
Source: SEE-NL
Header image: The North

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