26/03/2025 - The head of operations for the Benelux outfit focused on US independent films spoke about how the company strategises to distribute titles across its territories

Based jointly in Belgium and the Netherlands, Benelux distributor The Searchers is fresh off of its Best International Feature win for I'm Still Here [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] at the Academy Awards, a movie that the company released in its territories at the end of February. For the newest edition of Distributor of the Month, we sat down with Vincent Breedeveld, head of operations for the distribution outfit. In our conversation, we discussed the company’s editorial line, the role of festivals for more commercial films, and the challenges and opportunities when it comes to developing strategies for distributing across regions with different audiences.

Cineuropa: Could you start by explaining your business model and editorial policy?
Vincent Breedeveld: We are a Benelux all-rights distributor. Most of our films we acquire for theatrical releases – it’s about 20-25 per year. In the last couple of years, we've been focusing on US independent movies, both very commercial flicks, such as The Beekeeper, and films that have played [at IFFR], like I'm Still Here and Maria [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] – features that are typically categorised as arthouse. We approach these types of movies in more of a crossover way: we try to have a collaboration with more multiplexes to try and see how that works. It's always a mix of theatres and partners that we work with.

I would say on the editorial line that we focus on Oscar-winning movies, which is a big word, but I must say that for the last couple of years, our movies have been doing so consistently well at the Oscars. It’s something we truly want to be acquiring maybe three years in advance. It’s about 90% based on script.

Do you see festivals as a launchpad for distribution, even with a more commercial focus?
In the last couple of years, we’ve been working more on local Dutch and Belgian productions. During this year’s IFFR, we launched Fabula as the opening film. Last year, we also did a local Dutch festival, Film by the Sea. We released A Beautiful Imperfection, which is a Dutch-produced movie about a famous Dutch book. For us, those types of films work because they generate so much more attention when they have a local premiere at a festival and the cast can be highlighted. I would say the international festivals are very relevant for us launching a film, like Maria doing Venice and Toronto. We're always trying to figure out whether a movie and a festival are a good marketing fit for us. Can the film stand on its own feet during the festival? Or is it just then part of the festival? Because if it's just part of the festival, maybe we'll go for another route for the movie.

Could you talk us through a distribution strategy for a recent film, maybe one you are excited about in particular?
I'm very fond of I'm Still Here, which we acquired two years ago on script. The screenplay was beautiful, but it was also a deeply Brazilian, personal story. [IFFR] was the first time we showed it to a broader audience in the Benelux, and audiences are just gravitating towards it without us having a real marketing push behind it. There's word of mouth that is already there. People seem to have such a nose for things they want to see. We can point them in the right direction, but they know where to find them, and that’s very compelling.

How does your team work across the Benelux region, and what’s the split between your main territories, Belgium and the Netherlands?
It’s almost 50/50. The Belgian team is a bit bigger, but we really try to cooperate between the two territories. Everybody always talks about the differences, but a lot of the marketing strategies are similar in the way we want to reach our audience in the Netherlands, and then Belgium and Luxembourg. Yes, the people are different, but the broad strokes are the same. As we are a US-focused distributor working with the English language, Wallonia is always more difficult to reach than Flanders is. Our teams are not fully integrated, because that’s impossible, but once a week, they go over to each other’s offices, and they have Zoom meetings just to exchange information. We’re in this together, and we’re doing the same films. We all read the script at the same time, and then we should all figure out how to make this movie work in these territories.

Are there any major similarities or differences that you could point to that require special distinction when it comes to strategy?
Language is always a thing that’s interesting because it’s so connected to culture. We’ve seen so many films to which the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium really reacts, such as Lee and Patsers. When it comes to comedies, for instance, it’s often harder to get that across in Wallonia because audiences tend to have a stronger cultural connection to France. Because Belgium is divided into multiple language regions, it’s difficult to fully predict whether the same enthusiasm will be shared between Wallonia and Flanders, but sometimes it is, and [that’s very rewarding for us]. For example, for Conclave [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Red Carpet @ European Film …
film profile], audiences in both regions are very excited about it. It’s also quite incredible because the numbers there are approaching Dutch numbers, [which is rare for us] – it doesn’t happen often, because Belgium is a smaller country.