A family film, based on a well-known Dutch story from the Middle Ages. Mariken tells the compelling and poetic story of spirited young girl named Mariken. The orphan Mariken lives in a secluded forest with an eccentric old hermit. One day, she decides to leave her surroundings and sets off for town to buy a new goat. On her adventurous journey into the 'real' world, she finds out about the good and bad sides of people.
Cinematography
Dreamy medieval Netherlands that feels half-real, half-fable.
Acting
Jan Decleir's hermit—part Gandalf, part warning label.
Director
André van Duren
Laurien van den Broeck
Mariken
Jan Decleir
Archibald
Ramsey Nasr
Gauckler Joachim "Teufel"
Kim van Kooten
Isabella
Willeke van Ammelrooy
Griet (Mutter vom "Teufel")
Johanna ter Steege
Gräfin
Kees Boot
Dirk
Kasper van Kooten
Monnk
Porgy Franssen
Gijs
Geert Lageveen
Mönch Willem
Hans Karsenbarg
Mönch in der Kirche
Bert Geurkink
Jäger
Fred Goessens
Mann
Menno van Beekum
Geldwechsler
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Based on the 16th-century Dutch prose 'Mariken van Nieumeghen,' one of the oldest surviving secular Dutch literary works. The story was originally a moral warning tale that somehow became beloved children's literature.
Director André van Duren spent years securing funding because Dutch producers kept saying 'medieval children's drama' was box office poison. They weren't entirely wrong—this barely screened outside festivals.
NL
