Studio Caribe: Special Screening at the Curaçao International Film Festival
The two productions, rooted in Curaçao and Aruba, were developed within the Studio Caribe programme, which offers filmmakers from the ABCSSS islands the opportunity to develop their talents through the creation of a short film.
Mane Hòmbu, directed by Angelo Lourens, written by German Gruber and produced by Sulin Passial (Pantalla Chica Productions), tells the story of a stoic mechanic who struggles to process his grief following his partner’s miscarriage. The film explores the impact of social expectations surrounding masculinity, both within Curaçaoan society and beyond. Lourens: ‘My main motivation for this film is to break a taboo, also on a personal level, and to create a safe environment in which my two sons can grow into men who feel free to express themselves.’
In the experimental Adrift Wak Leu, directed by Velvet Zoé Ramos, written by Dimanche Jolie and produced by Rebecca Roos (Roos Productions), we follow a girl who drifts into a surreal daydream in which voices, landscape and identity merge. Ramos uses the rugged nature of Aruba as an almost apocalyptic setting and deliberately adopts a non-linear, poetic storytelling approach. Ramos: ‘In Aruba and the Caribbean, stories are often shaped differently: less linear, more relational, and open. That is what I tried to explore in this film.’
Following the screening, Monique Ruinen, Head of Film Activities at the Nederlands Film Fund, and festival director Michael Elias will engage in a conversation with the filmmakers about the making of the films. Ruinen: ‘The screening of these first two Studio Caribe films marks a great milestone. The programma was developed over several years in close collaboration with local filmmakers. With these films, the ambition to support filmmakers from the Caribbean part of the Kingdom and to bring their stories rooted on the islands to light, becomes a reality. These films mark a promising beginning.’
Studio Caribe
Studio Caribe is a development and production programme launched in 2024 by the Netherlands Film Fund. Through this scheme, the Fund offers filmmakers from Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Eustatius and Sint Maarten the opportunity to further develop their talents and contribute to a richer film landscape with original stories from and about the islands.
The first edition attracted strong interest, with nearly 60 applications submitted for development support. Twelve projects were selected and participated in a programme of coaching and training, of which six projects were ultimately realised as short films.
The second round of Studio Caribe is now open. Applicants from the ABCSSS islands as well as Suriname can submit their applications to the Film Fund until Tuesday, May 5, 2026.
Fund-supported films at CIFFF 2026
Other films supported by the Fund screening at the festival include Monikondee by Tolin Alexander, Lonnie van Brummelen and Siebren de Haan (nominated for the Yellow Robin Award), and Fort Buku by Loëlle Monsanto (nominated for the New Watapana Award).
