Rosie & Moussa

Rosie & Moussa

Dorothée van den Berghe

BE
2018
Feature Film
90’
Film education

»Shall we play topsy-turvy world?« – »Yes, we can jump on clouds!« – »And we can swim in the trees!«

»Why can’t everything be the way it used to be?« Rosie’s new to the Brussels’ district of Molenbeek. She lives there in a large apartment complex with her mother. The apartment is not exactly what Rosie had hoped for. But when she meets her smart neighbour Moussa, she changes her mind. The two become friends and Moussa promises Rosie he’ll help her find her father. When the father suddenly turns up again, everything is more complicated than she’d expected… The film is based on the children’s books by Michael De Cock and Judith Vanistendael.

»During a casting session, I asked children from the suburbs to describe how they saw their neighbourhood. Imad Borji, who plays Moussa and lives in the suburb in Molenbeek where the film was actually shot, saw enormous beauty in the place where he grew up. That’s what I wanted in the film: the vision of a child who doesn’t focus on problematic aspects, like adults do, but believes in the place’s positive charm. I discovered much more social cohesion in those neighbourhoods than I could ever expect.«
– Dorothée van den Berghe

Director

Dorothée van den Berghe

Script

Michael De Cock, Judith Vanistendael

Cinematography

Jan Vancaillie

Editing

Marie-Hélène Dozo

Sound

Christian Monheim, Gert Janssen

Cast

Savannah Vandendriessche, Imad Borji, Ruth Beeckmans, Titus De Voogdt

Production

Bo De Group, Helena Vlogaert, Climax Films, Ketnet

Contact

attraction distribution

Age Recommendation

suitable for age 10 and above

Dorothée van den Berghe

Dorothée van den Berghe studied sculpture and film at Sint-Lucas Academy in Brussels. After making several shorts with successful festival turnout and a couple of TV movies, Dorothée completed her first feature Meisje, a film depicting an intimate portrait of a young girl. My Queen Karo, her second feature, is partly based on Dorothée’s own memories of the 1970s in Amsterdam. Having finished her documentaries Off Spring and 31 Stops, she is currently in post-production for her documentary Coup de Grâce. Together with screenwriter Michael De Cock, with whom she made her third feature film Rosie & Moussa, she is developing her
fourth feature film Aller/Retour about an unexpected friendship between a truck driver and a transmigrant.


Films by Dorothée van den Berghe (Selection)
My Queen Karo 2009 | Zoë 2007 | Kroeskop 2006 | MEISJE 2002 | BXL MINUIT 1998 | Rue verte 1994 | Bekenntnissen 1994