06/03/2025 - The Flemish director is currently directing Arieh Worthalter and Jan Hammenecker in a drama penned by Girl and Close co-writer Angelo Tijssens

Actors Arieh Worthalter and Jan Hammenecker (© Christophe Martin)

Anke Blondé is in the process of shooting her second fiction feature film, Dust. The Flemish director first turned heads in 2019 with her first feature, The Best of Dorien B. [+see also:
film review
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interview: Anke Blondé
film profile], painting a unique portrait of a young mother whose world crumbles when she finds out her own mother is cheating on her father at the same time as learning she has breast cancer. It’s a dramedy about the events which sometimes change our lives against our wishes. Having directed several episodes of the Red Light and Juliet series, she’s now shifting gears at the helm of this new movie written by Flemish screenwriter and novelist Angelo Tijssens, who notably penned Girl [+see also:
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interview: Lukas Dhont
interview: Lukas Dhont
film profile] in league with Lukas Dhont.

Dust unfolds over the course of a day, during which two tech visionaries are faced with the collapse of their empire and the loss of their families’ and friends’ savings. They find themselves asking: If you only had 24 hours before going to jail, what would you do with your time?". We then flash back to the end of the 20th century and the threat of the y2k millennium bug. Luc and Geert are scaling summits when everything is suddenly taken away from them on account of an article due to appear in the morning press which threatens to reveal the truth about their network of shell companies and the unchecked innovation and political corruption at the heart of their business model. As prison sentences begin to feel inevitable, they each choose their own path to redemption and strive to earn the forgiveness of their families and of the community which invested colossal sums based on their promises and which now risks losing everything. They’re both faced with a choice: run away or accept the consequences of their actions.

The film’s lead roles have been entrusted to two actors whose talent has long been proven. Seasoned actor Jan Hammenecker (recently seen in The Taste of Things [+see also:
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film profile] and A Change of Love [+see also:
trailer
film profile]) and the Belgian actor of the moment Arieh Worthalter (crowned with a César last year via The Goldman Case [+see also:
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interview: Cédric Kahn
film profile] and the very recent recipient of a Magritte for the second year running, for Life’s A Bitch [+see also:
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interview: Xavier Seron
film profile] this time round). Starring alongside them are Anthony Welsh (Bob Marley: One Love, Calm with Horses [+see also:
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film profile]), Fania Sorel (of the Juliet series and Violet [+see also:
trailer
film profile]) and youngster Thibaud Dooms (the acting revelation from Skunk [+see also:
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interview: Thibaud Dooms
film profile] who also featured in the 2024 Shooting Stars line-up).

The film is being produced by Dries Phlypo on behalf of A Private View (Belgium) in co-production with James Watson and Mikko Makela on behalf of Bêtes Sauvages (UK), Joanna Szymanska and Krystyna Kantor for ShipsBoy (Poland) and Giorgos Karnavas for Heretic (Greece). The movie enjoys support from the Vlaams Audiovisueel Fonds (VAF), Screen Flanders, Tax Shelter/Casa Kafka, the Polish Film Institute, the Greek Film Centre, the Ekome Cash Rebate, the BFI Global Screen Fund and Eurimages. LevelK will manage international sales, while Kinepolis Film Distribution are set to distribute the film in Belgium.

(Translated from French)