Screenwriter Saar Ponsioen and producer Iris Otten of Juliet at Pupkin spoke to Cineuropa after their project Dreamscape was awarded the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award at this year’s Cinekid for Professionals, which took place in Amsterdam between 21 and 24 October. The award includes a €20,000 cash prize supporting the next stage of development for European co-productions.

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Cineuropa: How would you describe the concept behind Dreamscape and what themes does the project mostly tackle?
Saar Ponsioen: Dreamscape is about 10-year-old Sofia, who finds an old sketchbook at her grumpy great-grandfather’s house and uncovers the hushed-up family history of two Jewish brothers who hid in the zoo in Amsterdam during the war. It’s a hybrid film, partly based on true events, involving people who went into hiding in ARTIS Amsterdam Zoo during the Second World War. The main themes of the film are family secrets and intergenerational trauma. Children possess qualities that can cut through the barriers of the complex adult world. Sometimes it’s possible to heal through the power of imagination.

Who is your target audience?
Iris Otten: Dreamscape will be an unconventional family feature aimed at audiences aged eight and above. The unique subject of a zoo as a miraculous haven for Second World War refugees will undoubtedly capture everyone’s imagination. We believe the universal values on which the story is based will appeal to a wide international audience. It’s a story for the entire family. We also see great potential for educational materials which could extend the film’s impact beyond the screen.

How will you use the prize money you’ve won?
IO: We see this prize money as perfect for kickstarting the next development stage for our project. We’ll be able to start looking for the right international illustrator and animation co-production partners. We hope to pitch the film at the Annecy Film Festival. All of this will help us assemble the right team in order to bring this challenging film to life.

Who are the key creatives involved in the project?
SP: The screenplay is written by me, and the film will be directed by Margien Rogaar. Our animation consultants are Arnoud Rijken and Michiel Snijders from il Luster. The producers are Iris and Nathalie van der Burg from Juliet at Pupkin.

In your opinion, how important was it, overall, for you to take part in Cinekid?
IO: Working on the pitch gave the team the right focus. The international market’s enthusiastic reactions to our project, and winning this great award, were such positive experiences. They reassure us that we’re on the right track with this ambitious project.

What can you tell us about the visual concept for the project?
SP: Thanks to the magical setting of the zoo, the animals, and the positive character arcs in the story, Dreamscape will be bright and hopeful in both style and tone. We’re developing the film as part-live-action and part-animation.

The storyline around Sofia, which takes place in the present, will be live action. The part of the story about the young brothers in the drawings will be animated. Animating the past allows us to fully visualise Jacob’s imagination, which is one of the story’s core themes.

What’s next for you?
SP: I’m developing the script for the family feature The Island of Nose, together with director Noël Loozen and Studio Ruba, within the Netherlands Film Fund’s new TalentScope programme.

IO: As well as developing Dreamscape, we’re working on releasing Mees Peijnenburg’s second feature film, A Family, and on broadcasting a second season of the popular family series Hein. Both will see the light of day in 2026.

When will the current project will be ready?
IO: If everything goes as hoped and planned, the film will be ready in 2029.