Monday June 26th, the awards for the graduation films of the Netherlands Film Academy (NFA) class of 2017 were announced. It was the sixth time the Topkapi Films Fiction Award was granted to a graduation film: Aimée.
Aimée tells the story of the 26-year-old student Tessa, who takes on a job as high class escort. The secret life that comes with the job and the denial of her true feelings are causing her to lose herself, but also drives her away from her surroundings.
Directors Remy van Heugten and Albert Jan van Rees, script writer Thomas van der Ree and actress and script writer Rifka Lodeizen formed this year’s Jury, led by Topkapi Films’ script editor Marijn Bloemen.
Jury: “The film succeeds to make intimacy tangible and tactile. The protagonist had us from the opening scene and shows us different faces, which we accept without making any effort. The result of the sum of its parts: good storytelling, accurate cinematography, constant and sensitive directing of the actors, and – something we don’t want to let go unmentioned – talented acting. The film tells a personal story, but above all aims it at the world around us, a world in which sex, torn apart from love, has become powerful leverage.”
The team of Aimée wins a visit to the Berlinale 2018.
Scenario: Ashgan El-Hamus
Directed by: Daan de Groot
Production: Valerie Bisscheroux, Maaike Gronheid, Cecile Neeteson
Cinematography: Simon Meesters
Gaffer: Abel van Dijk
Production Design: Eline van der Pol
Costume Design: Julia Klok
Sound (Design): Tessa Fransen
Soundmix: Gijs Domen
Vfx Supervision: Aron Fels
Vfx: Patrick Blankenzee, Tommy Jansen, Johnny Roek, Jorrit Schulte, Jonas Vonk
Editing: David Heemstra
Composer: Maryna Boiko