Crazy Days

Crazy Days (2021), directed by Sanne Rovers, is a documentary that delves into the challenges faced by the Dutch National Opera during the COVID-19 pandemic. As the company prepares for Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro, stringent health measures—such as mask-wearing during rehearsals and limited room capacities—threaten the production. Through intimate behind-the-scenes footage, the film captures the resilience and creativity of the cast and crew as they navigate uncertainty to bring the opera to life

For the colour palette of this project we worked on the surreal contrast between the rich colourful costumes and the grey office-like atmosphere of the behind-the-scenes architecture.

Credits
written and directed bySanne Rovers
cinematographyGregor Meerman
editingRiekje Ziengs
producerIlja Roomans
production companyDocmakers

Daddy And The Warlord

Daddy and the Warlord (2019), directed by Shamira Raphaëla and co-directed by journalist Clarice Gargard, is a poignant documentary exploring the complexities of personal and political legacies. Clarice embarks on a journey to uncover the truth about her father, who served under three corrupt leaders, including the notorious war criminal Charles Taylor, during Liberia’s tumultuous history. As she delves deeper, Clarice confronts the blurred lines between patriotism, power, and moral compromise, challenging her perception of heroism and villainy.

The film delves into themes of war, rebellion, and the fading of ideals in times of conflict. ​

For this film cinematographer Jefrim Rothuizen used RGB LED panels to create surreal palettes evoking a fever dream of colour. During colourgrading we leaned into this heavily. Careful preprocessing and denoising of the Sony A7s II footage allowed us to really push the material to its limits.

Credits
written and directed byShamira Raphaëla & Clarice Gargard
cinematographyJefrim Rothuizen
editingGert van Berckelaer
producerMichiel van Erp, Monique Busman
production companyDe Familie Film & TV

Instant Dreams

Instant Dreams is a feature documentary by Willem Baptist (who I collaborated with on many of his previous films, like Wild boar and I’m Never Afraid!) about the fascination and love for Polaroids. When Polaroid announced the end of instant film in 2008, the last still working factory was bought by a small group of enthusiasts.

Among them is the retired scientist Stephen Herchen who previously collaborated with the inventor of Polaroid and is still trying to unravel the secret of the lost chemical formula.

Instant Dreams was lensed by Gregor Meerman, using his Arri Alexa to shoot absolutely stunning material. I’ve received a lot of compliments on the look of Instant Dreams, but really Gregor deserves most the credit. Some additional material was shot using a drone, some GH4 on a gimbal and some Black Magic Pocket Cinema camera – which needed to be seamlessly matched with the Arri Alexa material. And there was a substantial amount of archive footages – some of it scanned from the original 16mm negatives, but other elements were pulled directly off Youtube. So a lot of additional work was done restoring the material to hold up in cinematic projection.

Credits
written and directed byJasper Coppes
cinematographer
editorTralala
producerLonnie van Brummelen
production companyVriza

Ninnoc

Why do you have to do what everyone else does and why does everyone have to look the same? Ninnoc struggles when she is in a group. She doesn’t just want to adapt to the others, but she’s also afraid of being excluded. Can you deviate in a group? Or will you then end up alone?

In the documentary Ninnoc you crawl in Ninnoc’s head. And find her in an empty school. Can she escape from the group or does she always carry it with her? What part of herself does Ninnoc show and what does she keep hidden?

When director Niki, cinematographer Jefrim and I spoke about the film we immediately agreed that even though the subject and images can easily become dark and haunting, we really wanted the look to also have a soft and romantic side. So even though the lighting is sometimes dramatic we created a more pastel airy look that brings out the softer side of Ninnoc.

In addition to colour, I created some visual effects and did some small retouching.