Three international co-productions supported by HBF Plus

Film projects from Dutch producers Topkapi Films, Lemming Film and Revolver have been selected in the first Hubert Bals Fund Plus round. The three producers will each receive a contribution of €50,000 to the realisation of their project from the Netherlands Film Fund, co-producing a film supported by the Hubert Bals Fund.

Land and Shade (Colombia) is the first film by Colombian filmmaker César Acevedo. An old farmer returns to his home, but has become completely alienated from his family and the village where he grew up. Danger looms on all sides across the vast, shimmering sugar cane fields; industrial progress is bringing far-reaching changes to the poor countryside. A heartrending and socially aware family drama plays out between towering crops and choking dust. The film was produced by Burning Blue from Colombia and co-produced by Ciné-Sud Promotion from France, German production company Una Films and Topkapi Films from the Netherlands.

Oblivion Verses (Iran) is the debut film by Iranian filmmaker Alireza Khatami. Oblivion Verses tells a poetic story set in modern Iran. Iran, 2009. The Morgue man, 70, works at the morgue for the indigent in a huge cemetery. One morning, the militia invades the morgue. After their departure, the morgue man discovers the body of a young woman shot dead. He will bring together all the energies to give a decent burial to the young woman before the return of the militia. The film is produced by House on Fire (France) and co-produced by German production company Endorphine Production, Bulut Film from Turkey and Lemming Film from the Netherlands.

Don’t Swallow My Heart, Alligator Girl (Brazil) is the first solo feature by Brazilian filmmaker Felipe Bragança. The border between Brazil and Paraguay: living on opposite sides of a big river, Brazilian boy Joca falls in love with indigenous-Paraguayan girl Basano. A magical tale of impossible love and adventure in this land full of memories of colonial wars and indigenous genocide. The film is produced by Duas Mariola Filmes, Zazen Producoes and Globo Filmes from Brazil and co-produced by Damned Film of France, Zero One Films from Germany and Revolver Media of the Netherlands.

HBF Plus is a programme by the Netherlands Film Fund and International Film Festival Rotterdam that is successfully involving Dutch film producers in international co-productions that have already received support from the HBF. The programme offers support to talented filmmakers from Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and parts of Eastern Europe. Each year, the HBF supports 20 to 30 film projects in their script development or post-production. Since 2006, the Netherlands Film Fund has annually made a sum of € 200,000 available for the HBF Plus programme.

Press information:
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