Personal details
- Professions: Director, Second Unit Director or Assistant Director, Producer
Bobby Boermans—yeah, that guy’s pretty much a powerhouse in Dutch film and TV. He’s the mind behind The Golden Hour, which blew up on Netflix, snagging top 10 spots in twenty countries and even hitting number one in Germany, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Not bad, right? And then there’s Mocro Maffia, his gritty, wild ride through Amsterdam’s gang scene. Six seasons, a pile of awards (including the Dutch Academy Award for Best Drama-Series), and a bunch of spin-offs—safe to say, it’s a big deal. Boermans doesn’t stick to one lane either. He’s tackled the adrenaline-pumping F16 drama High Flyers (working with the actual Royal Dutch Air Force, because why not?), and he directed The Neighbors, which made history as the first Dutch scripted series to land on Amazon Prime after Channel 4 picked it up. Early on, he jumped in with Claustrophobia, his horror debut, and then App, a thriller that was the first to use a second screen in theaters—way ahead of its time. He also got a Prix Europa nom for Roffa, and even dipped into musical theater with Sky. 2024 saw him drop Invasion, a war film shot entirely in the Caribbean with help from the Royal Dutch Navy. And now? He’s got an upcoming Netflix thriller in the pipeline. Boermans co-founded 2cfilm in Amsterdam, sits on the DAFF board, is tight with Shortcutz Film, and hangs with the European Film Academy. Basically, the guy’s everywhere in the Dutch film world.
movies trivia nSo, there’s this wild bit of movie history—someone actually directed the very first film where you needed an app on your phone while sitting in the movie theater. Seriously, a legit “second screen” experience, way before it was cool or whatever. Basically, you’d sit there, popcorn in hand, but also glued to your phone because the app would sync up with the movie. Stuff would pop up—behind the scenes, extra clues, bonus content—right in real time. It was like you’re part of the movie, not just watching it. People were kinda split on it. Some thought it was super immersive, others were like “stop making me multitask, I just want to watch my movie!” Still, it was a gutsy move, blending tech and cinema. Not exactly something you see every day, and, honestly, it paved the way for all those interactive experiences we get now. Gotta respect that level of experimentation.
Konidela Ram Charan