Two-time Indy Film Library Awards finalist Andreas van Riet has celebrated the premiere of his latest film. Events in London and Amsterdam saw The Nettle Man play to packed theatres on both sides of the English Channel.
Indy Film Library followers will remember that Van Riet’s previous short, The Metamorphosis, was one of the most successful additions to our 2024 programme. As well as being the best-read IFL review of the last year, the film received a sold-out screening to cap our April event at Cavia, and won Best Cinematography, while Van Riet himself picked up a special commendation in the Best Director category.
The Nettle Man refused to rest on those laurels, delivering a completely original production, which moves away from the dark and desperate themes of Kafka’s novel, to deliver something which might be more reminiscent of classic children’s television. And the risk paid off, with the film being selected for IFL’s 2025 showcase, and picking up Best Score for Milo Paulus’ evocative soundtrack.
Building on that momentum, The Nettle Man has officially premiered, via two sold-out events in the capital cities of the UK and the Netherlands. The event in Amsterdam took place at the Supermercator venue – where Van Riet and a group of fellow cinephiles have been building a growing screening label of their own, ‘Cinemercator’ – and featured two screenings of the film, to accommodate two maximum capacity crowds.
Between 50 and 60 people were present, including friends, family and a rogue’s gallery of Amsterdam’s film community – including representatives from Indy Film Library, the Neo Kino A.D. screening label, and even Drie Dagen Vis director Peter Hoogendoorn.
Guests packed into the venue were treated to some homemade nettle soup, as well as an exhibition of Natalia Cincunegui’s emotive concept art, which she provided for the film.
Speaking at the screening, Cincunegui said of Van Riet (who happens to be her son), “I think true beauty is always poetic, and I see that in Andreas’ films, besides the tragedy – which we witness and live in. Nevertheless, he displays this in such a way that we don’t want his films to end.”
Referencing his earlier film, she added, “In this time when we are mainly focussed on profit and functionality, I think it is very good to, like a cockroach – we cannot be broken, continue to go on and share beauty, and celebrate that together; that man is quite beautiful and that there is hope.”
🙂