Croatian programme - Minority co-production

Tunisian Nazir is married to the pregnant Dutch Kimmy. During Arab Spring, they decide to leave the country, but only Kimmy is allowed across the border into Europe. Nazir’s papers are not enough for the officials, and he is forced to find alternative ways to join his wife in the Netherlands. In one of his attempts to get there, he manages to reach the Italian island of Lampedusa by boat, where he is imprisoned as an illegal refugee. In the meantime, Kimmy visits various institutions and does everything she can to help Nazir.

The Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Croatia | 2018 | 104’
drama | CROATIAN PREMIERE

DIRECTOR Ben Sombogaart | SCREENPLAY Tijs van Marle, Massimo Gaudioso | CINEMATOGRAPHY Jan Moskoeps | EDITOR David Verdurme | PRODUCTION DESIGN Ivan Veljača | COSTUME DESIGN Željka Franulović | SOUND Wart Wamsteker | SCORE Hannes De Maeyer | MAKE UP Ana Bulajić-Črček | ACTORS Melody Klaver, Nabil Mallat, Mehdi Meskar, Medina Schuurman | PRODUCER Reinier Selen | COMPANY Rinkel fllm | COPRODUCED BY Jaako dobra produkcija u suradnji s Nukleus filmom Jaako dobra produkcija in cooperation with Nukleus film

Ben Sombogaart (Amsterdam, 1947) is a director and screenwriter. He attended the Netherlands Film Academy in Amsterdam, and later directed noted and awarded documentaries, as well as children’s and youth films. He is most well-know for his films Bride Flight (2008), De storm (2009), Kruistocht in spijkerbroek (2006), and Twin Sisters (2002), which earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. His films Mijn vader woont in Rio (1989) and De jongen die niet meer praatte (1996) received awards at the Berlin International Film Festival (Award of the Senator for Women, Youth and Family, and UNICEF Award). Rafael, which focuses on a true story about a couple that went through hell to be together, was filmed in Croatia. The first time Sombogaat filmed in Croatia was in 2005, for the film Kruistocht in spijkerbroek.