Flemish film gets its own image campaign

The first wave of the campaign brings together five Flemish films that have previously been screened at international festivals or events:

• Paradise by Bob Colaerts tells the story of a man who, fresh out of prison, does everything he can to save his beleaguered mother. Said Boumazoughe conceived the idea and plays a lead role. The action thriller was screened at genre film festivals and hits theaters on 23 September; KFD is the distributor.
  Tegenwoordig heet iedereen Sorry (Everyone's Sorry Nowadays) by Frederike Migom is a coming-of-age film based on the book of the same name by Bart Moeyaert. The film had its world premiere in the Generation KPlus section at the Berlinale and is being screened at the 53rd edition of Film Fest Gent. Distributor Paradiso releases the film in theaters on 14 October.
  Coward by Lukas Dhont, set behind the front lines of World War I, won the award for Best Actor at Cannes and is vying for an Oscar nomination for Best International Feature Film on behalf of Belgium. Coward opens Film Fest Ghent on 7 October and arrives in cinemas on 21 October; Lumière is the distributor.
  Heysel 85 by Teodora Ana Mihai blends documentary footage of the Heysel Stadium disaster with fictional elements. The film premiered at a special gala screening at the Berlinale, has been sold worldwide, and will be released locally by KFD on 18 November.
  The Silent Treatment by Caroline Strubbe is the final installment of the Trying to Forget to Remember trilogy. This atmospheric psychological drama explores how imagination can help us process trauma. The film screened at Film Fest Gent last year and was shown at MoMA in New York in May.

Radar 

In a press release, Karla Puttemans, Director-Intendant of the VAF, states that “Flemish film deserves to be seen! As the initiator of this campaign, and with the support of VRT, the VAF aims to put local films on the radar of the local audience. An audience that is just as diverse as the films themselves.”

“As a public broadcaster, we consider it important to make these stories visible and to bring home-grown talent to a wide audience,” adds Olivier Goris of VRT.

Tijd voor Vlaamse Film aims to bring a diverse range of films closer to the Flemish public and to reinforce the individual advertising campaigns of film distributors. The goal is to encourage as many Flemish people as possible to see Flemish films in cinemas and to boost the visibility of local productions in a competitive market.

The campaign has its own website: www.vaf.be/tijdvoorvlaamsefilm