‘Sweet Dreams’ Director Ena Sendijarević Sees Her Drama As A “Surrealist Bridge To The Past” – Contenders International
Bosnian-Dutch director Ena Sendijarević’s satire Sweet Dreams unfolds on a plantation in the Dutch East Indies that is falling into decay in step with the crumbling of the Netherlands’ colonial power.
Former Paul Verhoeven muse Renée Soutendijk heads the cast as the mistress of the house, who finds herself navigating the mounting chaos on her own after her larger-than-life plantation boss husband dies suddenly.
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The situation takes a further unexpected turn when it is revealed that he has left part of his estate to his illegitimate son with the housekeeper, played by Indonesian model Hayati Azis, who is quiet parallel female force in the household.
On the face of it, the Netherlands’ Oscar entry Sweet Dreams marks a departure for Sendijarević, whose breakthrough short Import and 2019 first feature Take Me Somewhere Nice tapped into her experiences growing up as a refugee after her family fled the war in Bosnia.
But Sendijarević says there is continuity.
“Even if my previous feature was set in Bosnia, it dealt with the themes of migration, displacement and identity, which are themes I’m addressing in Sweet Dreams as well,” she told an International Contenders panel on Saturday.
“I’ve grown up in the Netherlands and in Western Europe,” she added. “Colonialism is a very big part of its history. I wanted to learn more about this history.”
RELATED: Deadline’s Contenders International – Full Coverage
The filmmaker said, however, that she did not want to make a conventional period drama.
“I didn’t want to look back in time and point with the finger and say, ‘Those were the dark pages in history, and now we live in the white pages of history.’ I wanted more like a surrealist bridge to the past, using a very contemporary film language.”
Soutendijk said she was drawn to the production for Sendijarević’s original, female gaze on this period of Dutch history.
“I was so intrigued by the script. It was so detailed in every way,” she said. “She created this whole new world. When we met and did the test, it really clicked. I was really open to learning from her and her female look upon this time in history.”
Sendijarević’s interpretation has also gone down well with local audiences.
Sweet Dreams has grossed more than $700,000 since its late-Spetember release, which is a respectable result for an arthouse indie film.
It also swept the board at the Netherlands Film Festival in October, winning its best Feature Film, Director, Cinematography, Leading Role for Soutendijk and Supporting Role for Florian Myjer.
“I think it is a heavy subject, but I think it’s a playful film,” Sendijarević suggested when quizzed on the pic’s appeal.
Check out the panel video above.
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