Two award winning Dutch short films about SS Concentration Camp Vught are now available. The films, realized by promising young Dutch director Tim Klok and Toronto, ON based screenwriter Dr. Cees Baas, depict carefully researched events in the lives of two Jewish girls that disappeared from their school class and were imprisoned in Dutch SS concentration Camp Herzogenbusch, in Vught.
The films were made under supervision of the Anne Frank Foundation. After being a surprise winner of the Dutch Golden Heron award, the films went on to win Gold Camera and Silver Screen awards at the US International Film and Video Festival of Redondo Beach and the “Laurier de Bronze” at Le Creusot, France. Juries and international media praise the films for their ingenious combination of documentary and drama that is moving and credible without being sentimental. They also note the sincerity and historic accuracy as well as the absence of actual violence, a relief to many parents who want to introduce their children to the Holocaust in a way that creates opportunities for family discussions.
The movies were released in the Netherlands in December 2008, and have met with phenomenal demand. Tens of thousands of students from grades 5 to 9 have watched the movies and school tours to the former campsite are booked months in advance as staff struggles to keep up with unprecedented interest from all over the country.
Tags: Book and Film review, History, holocaust, Jews
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