Flanders / we are co-production: Menuetto

Menuetto's recent titles include Cannes winners La Civil and The Eight Mountains, Berlin-selected The Lost Boys, and Everybody Loves Diamonds, a major series service-produced for Amazon.

Then there is Will, a film in association with Netflix that tells the story of two young policemen in Antwerp during World War Two who find themselves caught between working for the occupiers and aiding the Resistance. In addition to Netflix, the project brought together producers from Belgium, the Netherlands and Poland. Belgian financing included the Flanders Audiovisual Fund, the Centre du Cinéma in Wallonia, the Belgian Tax Shelter, the former Antwerp Film Bonus and Screen Flanders.

“That allowed us to work with a lot of talent form Flanders and to shoot in a lot of Flemish locations,” says Everaert. The director was Tim Mielants (Peaky Blinders S03) and the DoP Robrecht Heyvaert (Bad Boys for Life), with the costume, production design and editing departments all staffed from Flanders.

Locations used included Antwerp’s majestic Central Station, the arches beneath the railway tracks, and the Art Nouveau fire station in Antwerp South.

This is typical of the advantages that Flanders can offer international co-productions. “We can draw on highly skilled and multilingual casts and crews, plus top-of-the-line production and post-production facilities,” explains Nancy Schoesetters, who looks after finance and business development at Menuetto. “Last but not least, Flanders has many faces, from medieval to modern, from rural to urban.”

Flanders also offers numerous benefits when it comes to film finance.

“What we look for in potential projects is, first and foremost, the partnership with the producers,” says Everaert. “And where possible, we like to have repeat projects with the same producers.” This has resulted in strong co-production relationships with Topkapi in the Netherlands, Wildside in Italy, and Pyramide in France.

“And with a good partner comes a good financing plan,” he goes on. “We are looking for decent Flemish and Belgian spend, with artistic quality, and that can be for art-house or more mainstream features.”

Menuetto’s next in-house projects include a new feature from Felix Van Groeningen, Heysel 85 from Teodora Ana Mihai (director of La Civil), and Torpor, the debut feature from Meltse Van Coillie, which has been selected for the Cannes Cinéfondation.

Pending international co-productions include Safe Harbor by Ozark show-runner Mark Williams, The Kollective by Gomorrah writers Leonardo Fasoli and Maddalena Ravagli, and new films by Joachim Lafosse and César Diaz.

The Flanders Region boasts highly skilled talent both in front and behind the camera, authentic film locations, state-of-the-art studio complexes, animation studios, and post-production services. Want to learn more about co-production possibilities and partnerships with Flanders? Discover our testimonials archive, which can be searched by key word.

With a budget of 3.5 million euros the Screen Flanders Economic Fund invests in approx. 20 projects each year. Producers wanting to collaborate with Flanders can apply for funding to cover part of their production expenses in the Region. Foreign producers interested in applying can co-produce with a Belgian producer.

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