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INSTINCT is The Netherlands' Oscar entry

Instinct, by director Halina Reijn, has been chosen as the official entry from The Netherlands for the 2020 Academy Award in the International Feature Film category.

Instinct, Halina Reijn’s debut feature, world premiered at the Locarno Film Festival where it won the Variety Piazza Grande Award, a prize awarded by a jury of several of the American paper's critics attending Locarno to a film that stands out for both its artistic qualities and potential for theatrical release. The film also received a Special Mention for Best First Feature at the Festival in Switzerland. Instinct is set to celebrate its North-American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it is presented in the Contemporary World Cinema programme, and is selected for the BFI London Film Festival in October.

Starring Carice van Houten (Brimstone, Game of Thrones) and Marwan Kenzari (Wolf, Aladdin), Instinct is a psychological thriller about an experienced psychologist working in a penal institution who becomes obsessed with a sex offender who appears to be ready to return to society. The film is produced by Topkapi Films in co-production with Man Up and BNNVARA, and is supported by the Netherlands Film Fund, the Netherlands Film Production Incentive en CoBO Fund. International sales are handled by Films Boutique.

The nominations in all categories for the Academy Awards will be announced on January 13, 2020. The 92nd Oscars Award Ceremony will take place February 9.