Animation and Kids at the Heart of Session 26 of screen.brussels
For its first session of 2025, screen.brussels is investing in 10 projects with a total amount of €999,000, expected to generate over €10 million in audiovisual spending in the Brussels-Capital Region. This represents a return of €10 for every €1 invested. The investments are being made in 3 feature films, 1 series, 2 documentaries, and 4 animation projects.
Brussels-Based Production Companies Leading the Way
Almost all – 9 out of 10 - selected projects are led by Brussels-based production companies.
Brussels Talent in Directing
Among the 10 projects, 37.5% of the directors are from Brussels (6 out of 16). The selected directors include Michal Wald for L'île de la demoiselle, Julien Henry for Alma, Sergio Ghizzardi for Ne jamais gaspiller une bonne crise, Frederike Migom for Mag ik (ik) zijn?, Fabrice Armand for La cuisine belge pour les snuls, and Rachel Marino for Les Minus.
Projects Predominantly... Belgian
Seven out of the ten selected projects are majority Belgian productions. However, Brussels remains a hub for international co-productions, with 30% of the projects being minority productions in collaboration with France (four projects), as well as Canada, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
#BrusselsAnimationValley Thriving for Young Audiences
The Brussels animation sector continues to strengthen, thanks to the talents and studios of #BrusselsAnimationValley, which is supporting four projects, three of which are aimed at kids audiences. These include the feature film Yugly by nWave and the minority co-produced series Patouille (co-produced by Umedia) and Les Minus (co-produced with Panique!). These series will be broadcast on France TV (Patouille) and RTBF and VRT (Les Minus).
A Tight Budgetary Context
Aware of the current budgetary challenges in the Brussels-Capital Region, the Board of Directors of screen.brussels ensures prudent oversight and particular attention to the management of available budgets.
In this regard, transparent communication on the remaining available budget for the year's last two sessions will be provided to the sector ahead of the deadlines on June 6, 2025, and September 12, 2025.
L'île de la demoiselle
1542, Jacques Cartier's second mission to Canada. While travelling with her future husband and commander of the expedition, the young Marguerite de la Rocque, pregnant with another man's child, is abandoned on a deserted island off the coast of Newfoundland, along with the child's father and a maidservant. She remained on the island for two years, surviving hunger, cold, despair and madness. L'ÎLE DE LA DEMOISELLE is loosely based on the true and forgotten story of Marguerite de la Rocque.
The Wolf Will Tear Your Immaculate Hands
In the 19th-century rural landscape of the Pacific Northwest, Isabel, a Native American governess, is sent to the home of an English family, expected to instil Christian values in their two young girls, following the tragic death of their mother. The upcoming arranged marriage of the eldest daughter, the father's obsession with hunting wolves, and the unfolding of inexplicable events raise tensions in the household. Isabel, herself grappling with her own roots, starts to question the education she's instilling in the young girls.
Vigilante
In a system that consistently let him down, Morville, a young, single, thirty-something has become a vigilante, catching paedophiles by posing as a child on social media. His goal? Leave them exposed and ruin their lives. When one of his friends, another vigilante, is brutally attacked, Morville decides to take the law into his own hands. This plunges him even deeper into a dark universe that will bring him face to face with his former prey, and with the police who despise vigilantes. Faced with the collateral damage from his actions, Morville is confronted with the morality of his own form of justice.
1 series
Alma
Belgium, 2025. A forensic pathologist with a traumatic past attempts to stop a series of bacteriological attacks perpetrated by a nurse. His mission brings him face to face with the hospital refusing to break the silence on the attacks; the very same hospital where his sister works, an emergency doctor with whom he cut ties many years ago...
2 documentary projects
Mag ik (ik) zijn?
Young people, admitted to psychiatric units, have their say. They share the feeling of not being able to exist in the world. MAY I BE (ME)? starts from their own thoughts and emotions and, therefore, asks questions about all of us, and the society we live in.
Ne jamais gaspiller une bonne crise
A meticulous investigation into the emerging industry of hydrogen, revealing the impacts of this sector and its hidden challenges. This documentary goes behind the scenes of geopolitics, the world of energy and the climate emergency. Is hydrogen perhaps not such a good idea after all?
4 animation projects
La cuisine belge pour les snuls
La cuisine belge pour les snuls is a Belgian animated series that viewers will find funny, inventive, dynamic and instructive. Each colourful and well-illustrated episode teaches you how to easily make a typically Belgian recipe.
Les Minus
Welcome to Minusville, where every toy comes with a little madness! Oli the daredevil and Titus the handyman solve small, every-day problems with ingenious creations, embarking on inspiring adventures helping children to believe in themselves and to tinker and experiment to their heart's content! Alongside the series, stop-motion tutorials are filmed so children can learn how to recreate the DIY creations seen in the episodes. They encourage children to be creative and try things themselves, building their self-confidence.
Patouille
Led by the characters Patouille and Momo, children aged 3 to 7 can learn to empathise with the world of plants. Patouille is a small creature with the ability to become really tiny and creep inside the plants to take a closer look at them. His larger friend Momo has the power to speed up time and see how the plants grow. In each episode, Patouille will dive right into a new plant, and it will be revealed in all its forms, from seed to fruit, thanks to Momo's special powers.
Yugly
Yugly is the nicest dog you've ever met, the very epitome of a good boy. However, he has just one problem: he's unbelievably ugly. Against all odds, his dream is to take part in the Best in Show competition for dogs.