Director Digna Sinke. Foto: Tara Fallaux

This fall the Viennale Film Festival dedicates a retrospective to Dutch director Digna Sinke. It will include her latest feature film Hemelsleutel** (Key to Heaven), produced by Tomtit Film, as well as her earliest graduation short film Groeten uit Zonnemaire (1972). The retrospective will showcase her cinematic oeuvre with a total of 13 films. Sinke will attend the Vienna Film Festival to introduce and discuss her work.

“It is a great pleasure for us to present Digna Sinke’s multifaceted work as part of a monographic program at the Viennale,” said Eva Sangiorgi, artistic director of Viennale. “Her films are characterized by an extraordinary creative freedom – she combines diverse cinematic techniques with a fine sense of flair and explores both landscapes and the depths of human experience with an almost painterly sensitivity.”

The retrospective curated by Gerwin Tamsma, former programmer of International Film Festival Rotterdam, will feature both live action films Above the Mountains (1992) and Belle van Zuylen (1993), and documentaries such as Wistful Wilderness (2010) and Keeping & Saving or How to Live* (2018).

Earlier this year, Sinke introduced her new film Hemelsleutel** on the ferry to Eye Filmmuseum. In this deeply personal and essayistic film, Sinke mixes fiction and documentary. “It is a film about filmmaking,” said Sinke. “It is about the search for hope, for friendship, for love, for comfort, and always in connection with people.” The film follows a potential feature film about Lea, a photographer tasked with capturing Amsterdam's evolving harbour area, as seen from the perspective of the filmmaker. Hemelsleutel**, produced by Tomtit Film, premiered at IFFR’s Harbour section. The film is currently being released in Dutch cinemas by Verde Films.

The 63rd edition of the Viennale Film Festival takes place from 16-28 October. Find more information here.

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*film supported by the Netherlands Film Fund
**supported by the Netherlands Film Fund and Netherlands Production Incentive