Three Dutch Films @ Wisconsin Film Festival 2017

Thu, Mar 30 - Thu, Apr 6  2017

From March 30 until April 6, three Dutch films will be represented at the Wisconsin Film Festival in Madison, Wisconsin. 

King’s Day / Koningsdag

It’s King’s Day in the Netherlands and everyone goes to the park to have fun. Well, not everyone. Younes’s dad is making him stay at their stall to sell car accessories, while Kelvin’s aggressive dad makes him sing so he can sell CDs. Over the course of the afternoon, Younes and Kelvin discover they have a lot in common.

Director: Steven Wouterlood

Screening: March 31, 11:00AM (short film program) @ Union South Marquee

Mr. Frog / Meester Kikker

Frans, a beloved teacher has a secret. He turns into a frog whenever these green, croaking, slimy animals are mentioned. Luckily, Sita, one of his students loves amphibians and she will do everything to protect him, no matter in what form. But will she, with the help of her fellow students, be able to? Especially with the strict new principal whose name is Stork and who seems to monitor the unconventional teacher closely at all times? Don’t miss this hilarious and heartwarming fantasy based on the bestselling novel by Dutch author Paul van Loon (Alfie, the Werewolf).

Director: Anna van der Heide

Screening: April 1, 12:30PM @ Union South Marquee

Stranger in Paradise

Europe’s refugee crisis is confronted head-on in this daring conversation-starter.  The film unfolds in three acts, each of which takes place in a classroom full of actual refugees.  At the front is Valentin, a Dutch actor who embodies a different political stance in each act: he’s a right-winger in the first iteration, liberal in the second, and finally, in the third, he represents the actual Dutch position on refugees.  The blunt dialogues between Valentin’s personae and the asylum seekers can be as enraging as they are illuminating, and are never less than riveting.  These are difficult and necessary dialogues, and 28 year-old director Guido Hendrikx rises to the level of fearless, challenging, and provocative filmmaking that this political firestorm requires.   Accomplished with little more than a chalkboard and conversation, Stranger in Paradise is a brutal lesson for us all, not least in its damning epilogue. “If Lars Von Trier were to make a documentary about the current immigration crisis in Europe, it might very well turn out like Stranger in Paradise” (Variety).

Director: Guido Hendrikx

Screening: April 4, 6:30PM @ Sundance Cinema 6 and April 5, 3:15PM @ Sundance Cinema 5

About the Wisconsin Film Festival

The Wisconsin Film Festival is presented by the UW-Madison Arts Institute in association with the Department of Communication Arts. Founded in 1999, the Festival presents an average of 150 film screenings over 8 days every spring, making it the largest university-produced film festival in the nation.

The Festival is known for its diverse film offerings: American independent, international cinema, documentaries, experimental and avant-garde, restored classics, the Wisconsin’s Own Competition (selections featuring Wisconsin filmmakers, themes, or settings) and Children’s Cinema: Big Screens, Little Folks. We strive to make films screened during the Festival accessible for all audiences.