_{El Houb by Shariff Nasr}

El Houb*, directed by Shariff Nasr and produced by BIND, wins the award for Best Screenplay for Film. The screenplay is written by Shariff Nasr and Philip Delmaar. The Moroccan-Dutch Karim returns to his parental home to tell his mother and father that he is attracted to men. After years of keeping up appearances, the word is finally out. The difficult conversations in the days that follow evoke beautiful and poignant memories that teach him that he has to break through and confront the culture of silence in his family. At the same time, he must come to terms with himself before he can expect acceptance from his family at all. Sales are handled by True Colours.

A Capella in D Mineur by Malu Janssen wins the award for Best Screenplay for Short Film. The screenplay is written by Caspar van Woudenberg. On a warm summer evening, four parents are struggling their parenthood when they have to answer the rash question posed by their infatuated children: can they start having sex?

The Golden Pen, which is awarded to the writers of the most viewed Dutch film in the cinemas in the Netherlands, goes to Soof 3* by Anne de Clercq. It is written by Luuk van Bemmelen, Anne de Clercq and Eddy Terstal. It is produced by KeyFilm in co-production with Millstreet Films. In Soof 3, Sophie’s life is finally back on track. She’s happy, her restaurant is booming and her kids are ready to leave the nest. And as usual, Sophie tries to keep far too many balls in the air at the same time. But she gets bad news just as her daughter comes back from abroad to introduce her fiancé. Sophie gratefully embraces her daughter’s wedding as an excuse to bury her head in the sand. But eventually she must learn to accept help from her loved ones, and that she’s worthy of their concern.

Directed by Michiel van Jaarsveld and produced by Hollands Licht, Het Jaar van Fortuyn* wins Best Screenplay for Television Series. It is written by Pieter Bart Korthuis and Nathan Vecht. The series is a dramatized version of the events surrounding the election campaign between Pim Fortuyn and Ad Melkert, leading up to the Dutch general election of 2002 and the murder of Pim Fortuyn.

Annually, the board of the Network of Screenwriters awards the Silver Pen to an individual or organization that has made a significant contribution to the field of screenwriting. This year, the Silver Pen is awarded to Marieta van Olphen, who has been the face of the Network of Screenwriters for more than 25 years. Van Olphen energetically and passionately organizes a wide range of activities, from awards ceremonies to large-scale events with international speakers. She always has a listening ear for all those seemingly solitary writers who greatly appreciate her personal and genuine attention. Over the years, she has picked up so many signals that she has become a hub of the industry.

SEE NL likes to congratulate all winners!
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*Film or series is supported by the Netherlands Film Fund and Film Production Incentive