KEYFILM
The netherlands
COMPANY PROFILE
KeyFilm develops and produces feature films and drama series in close collaboration with writers and directors for all platforms in a variety of genres for multiple audiences. Founder Hanneke Niens is an Oscar nominated producer, and with her team has an extensive international network of co-producers and financiers and has worked together with partners like ITVS, Eurimages, the British Film Institute, Chios Investments, Al Jazeera, Netflix, RTL and many European broadcasters, funds, distributors and sales agents. Niens (co-)produced over 20 drama series and 40 feature films.
KeyFilm projects are a.o. the summer hit drama series Swanenburg for NPO1, winning the NPO Award for most streamed series 2021 with 7 million streams. Box office successes are Soof, Soof 2, Soof 3 (20 million box office), Ventoux and So What Is Love. International festival selections are Nena by Saskia Diesing, winning the Berlinale Special Mention Jury Award 2015, IFFR opening film 2016 Beyond Sleep by Boudewijn Koole, the for Toronto selected film and Palestine Oscar submission The Idol by double Oscar-nominated director Hany Abu-Assad and The Reports on Sarah and Saleem by Rami and Muayad Alayan, awarded with the Tiger Award Best Scenario and the HBF Jury Award IFFR 2018.
KeyFilm and producer Niens received numerous (inter)national awards with their series and films, including an Oscar® nomination for Twin Sisters, an Emmy, three times the Prix Europa and a series of Golden Calf nominations for Best Film, which Twin Sisters won.
On the roll 2022/2023:
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In world premiere at the Venice Film Festival the debut film Queens by Yasmine Benkiran in co-production with France, Wallonia and Morocco.
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In world premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam: A House in Jerusalem by Rami Alayan & Muayad Alayan in co-production with the United Kingdom, Palestine, Greece and Germany.
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In release: Soof 3 by Anne de Clercq, webseries Shotgun! by Levi Verspeek on the YouTube channel of NPO 3 and NPO3.nl, and the international film Lost Transport by Saskia Diesing in co-production with Luxembourg and Germany.
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In production: Dark Matter by Stefano Odoardi in co-production with Italy, series Swanenburg 2 for NPO1, short film Hobi by Aramis Garcia Gonzalez and the sequel to Ventoux Last Call by Boris Paval Conen.
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In post production: the war drama Line of Fire by Roel Reiné and musicalfilm Just like in the Movies by Albert Jan van Rees en Dorien Goertzen.
Hanneke Niens
Producer
COMPANY HIGHLIGHTS
LOST TRANSPORT 2023
Genre: Post-war drama
Director: Saskia Diesing
Screenplay: Saskia Diesing
Cast: Hanna van Vliet, Anna Bachmann, Eugénie Anselin
In the spring of 1945 a train deporting hundreds of Jewish prisoners gets stranded near a small German village occupied by the Red Army. Condemned to each other and in a context of deep mistrust, desperation and revenge, an unexpected friendship emerges between Russian sniper Vera, village girl Winnie and Jewish-Dutch woman Simone.
SOOF 3 2022
Genre: Comedy
Director: Anne de Clercq
Screenplay: Eddy Terstall, Anne de Clercq, Luuk van Bemmelen
Cast: Lies Visschedijk, Fedja van Huêt, Anneke Blok, Dan Karaty
Sophie finally seems to have her life back on track. She’s happy, her restaurant is booming and her kids are ready to leave the nest. As usual, Sophie tries to keep way too many balls in the air at the same time.
Then she gets some bad news at the same time her daughter Sacha comes home from abroad to introduce her fiancée. Sophie gratefully embraces her daughter’s upcoming wedding as an excuse to bury her head in the sand. Soof must learn to accept help from her loved ones and that she’s worthy of their concern.
SWANENBURG SEASON 1 2021
Genre: Drama series
Director: Thomas Korthals Altes, Aniëlle Webster, Hans Somers
Screenplay: Dorien Goertzen, Martin van Steijn, Richard Kemper, Willem Bosch, Johan Fretz, Eva Aben, Judith Goudsmit, Matthijs Bockting, Pieter van den Berg, Joost Reijmers
Cast: Aus Greidanus Sr., Tine Joustra, Frederik Brom, Sanne Langelaar, Jan-Paul Buijs, Ella-June Henrard
When patriarch Jack Praal is confronted with his biggest fear and his youngest son Dirk is linked to the death of a woman, the family gets trapped into a web of intrigue and betrayal.
During the course of five weeks the series follows the family members who put their own interests aside in order to save everything. But not everyone is playing a fair game, which seems to result in the inevitable downfall of the once so close Praal family.
NPO Start Award most streamed dramaseries 2021
Best rated series 2021 with average rating of 8.1
SO WHAT IS LOVE 2020
Genre: Comedy
Director: Aniëlle Webster
Screenplay: Dorien Goertzen
Cast: Elise Schaap, Maarten Heijmans, Teun Luijkx, Anneke Blok, Michiel Romeyn, Jan-Paul Buijs, Maike Meijer
Big shot lawyer Gijs, who makes big money for his law firm from lucrative toxic divorces, is well on his way to become a partner. His credo: All is fair in love and war. But his idealistic co-worker Cato takes a very different perspective. Love is a verb, and when love fades, it is a lawyer’s job to make sure people separate peacefully from their failed relationships. When it turns out that Cato is also in the race for the coveted position of partner in the company, they are both forced to re-examine their beliefs on love, marriage and growing their careers. A feel-good film about how to manage modern-day life and relationships between men and women and on how to believe in love when divorce is your line of work.
Box office hit - ‘Golden film’ in the Netherlands
TENCH 2020
Genre: Drama
Director: Patrice Toye
Screenplay: Peter Seynaeve & Patrice Toye
Cast: Tijmen Govaerts, Julia Brown, Ina Geerts, Greet Verstraete, Line Pillet
After Jonathan is released from prison for lack of evidence, he returns to his mother living in a small cottage near the dunes. There Jonathan intents to become a different, better man. But even though he strictly sticks to the rules, his good intentions are soon put to the test when a young girl moves in next to him. Tench is a coproduction with main producer Prime Time.
International premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam 2020,
World premiere at the Film Fest Gent and winner of the audience award 2019
THE BEAST IN THE JUNGLE 2018
Genre: Drama/Romance/Dance
Director: Clara van Gool
Screenplay: Clara Van Gool, Glyn Maxwell
Cast: Dane Jeremy Hurst, Sarah Reynolds, Claire Johnston
The Beast in the Jungle is a film adaptation of Henry James’ 19th century novella of the same name. Set in a remote English country mansion and stretching from the Jamesian era to a globalised present-day setting, the film uses dance to recount the epic and unconventional love story of John Marcher (Dane Jeremy Hurst) and May Bartram (Sarah Reynolds). During a chance encounter ten years after first meeting, May reminds John that he once revealed to her a deep and menacing conviction that his life would be defined by a life-changing experience – one that was waiting for him “like a Beast in the Jungle.” Intrigued by his continued belief in this foreboding secret, May decides to stay by John’s side and soon develops feelings of genuine love for him. John is not able to reciprocate her devotion, preferring instead to resume his shallow life as a travelling businessman. Only when it’s too late, does John realize that the beast had already sprung in the jungle of his life.
World premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam 2019
