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The Weeping Walk

After previously helping to adapt his own novels for the big screen - leading him to Cannes for The Misfortunates, acclaimed Belgian author Dimitri Verhulst now makes his debut as a director, not losing a single touch of his characteristic humour in the process. The Weeping Walk is a sly, often bone dry, absurdist comedy that kicks-off with an unexpected final request at a funeral, turning the last salute to Christine into a procession along the countryside. Together with relatives, alleged friends, and real ones, her bewildered husband and children must reach the resting place of her choice: the town of Wettelen. Verhulst's road trip of straight-faced Kaurismäki-like misfits features oneliners aplenty and leads us on a fascinating journey where surprising truths come to light.

  • Dimitri Verhulst
    Director
  • Dimitri Verhulst
    Writer
    The Misfortunates
  • Eurydice Gysel
    Producer
    l´Ancre, Chez Joanna, Skunk, Terril, Les Miserables, Coureur, Angel,...
  • Koen Mortier
    Producer
    Terrill, Nr.10, Rookie, Coureur,Angel, Prey, Waste Land, ...
  • Marc van Warmerdam
    Producer
    Nr 10, Grimm re-edit, Angel, Donbass,Schneider vs Bax, Borgman, ...
  • Marten van Warmerdam
    Producer
    Don Bass, Game Boy, Allez Hop, ...
  • Peter Van den Begin
    Key Cast
    "Bass"
  • Tine Roggeman
    Key Cast
  • Cami Moonen
    Key Cast
    "Anne"
  • Hilde Heijnen
    Key Cast
    "Betty"
  • Dominque van Malder
    Key Cast
    "Frido"
  • Amara Reta
    Key Cast
    "Vera"
  • Tom Vermeir
    Key Cast
    "Herman"
  • Marijke Pinoy
    Key Cast
    "Tante Sherry"
  • Bert Haelvoet
    Key Cast
    "Notaris"
  • Emiel Vandenberghe
    Key Cast
    "Antonine"
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Waarom Wettelen
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Genres:
    Dark comedy, comedy, drama comedy
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 46 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    October 1, 2024
  • Country of Origin:
    Belgium
  • Country of Filming:
    Belgium
  • Language:
    Dutch
  • Shooting Format:
    RED
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35 : 1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Gent Filmfestival
    Gent
    Belgium
    October 14, 2024
    Belgium
  • PÖFF, Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival
    Tallinn
    Estonia
    November 19, 2024
    Baltics
    First time director
Distribution Information
  • atlas international film
    Sales Agent
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
  • Kinepolis Film Distribution
    Distributor
    Country: Belgium
  • Dutch Filmworks
    Distributor
    Country: Netherlands
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Dimitri Verhulst

Dimitri Verhulst is a well-known Belgian writer. With his novels he won, among others, the Young Europeans Literature Prize, the Libris and the Golden Owl Book Award. His work is translated into 30 languages and three of his books have already been filmed: ‘De Helaasheid Der Dingen’ by Felix van Groeningen which was selected for the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs in Cannes, ‘Problemski Hotel’ by Manu Riche and ‘Un Ange’ by Koen Mortier which had its world premiere in Toronto. For Michaël R. Roskam, he wrote the short ‘La Victime’ and co-wrote ‘Sylvia’ a feature film currently in development. ‘The Weeping Walk’ will be his first full-length feature as screenwriter and director.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

In my 25-year career as a writer, there has always been one story that I wanted to tell and just couldn’t get into a novel: it was ‘The Weeping Walk’! A different language was needed, one that included silence in its vocabulary. Film language, in other words. With this insight I could have easily thrown ‘The Weeping Walk’ in a trashcan, in spite of that, apparently, I am not like that.
50 is a better age to debut than at 25, and I was itching to do so. Ignorance can lead to innovation, but that’s not a plea for backwardness. I may be an autodidact, but I, by no means consider myself uneducated. In the years leading up to the actual filming, I mostly stole a lot of knowledge with eyes and ears on various film sets. The series ‘Made in Europe’ that I made for the Dutch broadcaster VPRO turned out to be crucial to my confidence in this adventure. Desire was my biggest motive; all I needed to do was to jump. Not