Frans Bromet

In 2022, 92% of those affected encountered aggression or violence. Frans Bromet portrays six influences who encounter violence while carrying out their work. The violence with which the actual consequences are, leaves personal physical, especially mental, traces.

Documentary filmmaker Frans Bromet is known for his striking portraits of ordinary Dutch people. Now he is the subject himself, but has little desire to rake up matters from his own life.

Frans Bromet lives at 'De Noord' number 20 in Ilpendam, North Holland: "An island of tranquility in a noisy world." The houses on the dike were previously inhabited by Ilpendam residents; now, Amsterdammers who fled the city live there. What is the difference between the original and the current residents?

Criticism of Israel is often labeled as antisemitism, particularly by a segment of the Jewish community. To what extent is this the case? Frans Bromet asks people with differing viewpoints on this complex subject.

Frans Bromet follows several cannabis growers who have been selected by lottery as the first suppliers of legal cannabis. Sequel to the 2021 documentary 'Legal Weed'. Ten growers have been selected by draw as the first legal cannabis growers for an experiment that would last four years. These are large companies where a lot of money is spent to enable large-scale production of cannabis. But the actual experiment still hasn't been fully rolled out. Only in a few cities is legal cannabis available in coffee shops. The biggest problems that growers and sellers face are supply stocks and the complexity of the track and trace system. Every movement of the weed must be registered. And that is almost impossible with a failing computer system. The future of the experiment remains highly unpredictable four years after its announcement.

To vent his own fears of divorce, Bromet follows a divorced 36-year-old woman, Hiske, a mother of two and working as an educational psychologist, through 'the laboratory of happiness'—the playgrounds of the 'me' era—with his camera. Through the life and experiences of this woman, he wants to discover what leads someone to—and what they hope for—from a divorce. The woman ends up in, among other places, a gay sauna, a group sex event, an institute for dynamic meditation, a maternity ward, and a sperm bank. Hiske professes that she is divorced in order to be able to search for her own possibilities without hindrance and regrets that her children no longer have a father. Frans calls her cruel because she took her husband's children away from him. Moreover, he is reinforced in his conviction that women do not wish to delve into men nearly enough.

The life and work of enigmatic Dutch/Californian conceptual artist Bas Jan Ader, who in 1975 disappeared under mysterious circumstances at sea in the smallest boat ever to cross the Atlantic. As seen through the eyes of fellow emigrant filmmaker René Daalder, the picture becomes a sweeping overview of contemporary art films as well as an epic saga of the transformative powers of the ocean.

Frans Bromet ends up in the Reade rehabilitation clinic in Amsterdam after a brain haemorrhage. He soon picks up his camera and films his roommates and healthcare staff. Frans discovers how important intensive guidance is. But the bond with his fellow sufferers is also greater than expected. When he hears of upcoming budget cuts, his concerns grow about the future of the institution and therefore also about the rehabilitation process of the clients.

Frans Bromet in search of the bad influences of the modern management culture.

This documentary, made by Frans Bromet and his son and daughter, explores music as an expression of homesickness and despair in the notorious refugee camp known as The Jungle in Calais.

Currently, purchasing cannabis is done through 'the back door'. What is sold legally is purchased illegally. The end of 2019 marked the start of a four-year experiment in which cannabis grown under state supervision is legally traded. This should lead to less crime and better quality weed with fewer harmful substances. After a strict selection procedure, ten growers are selected who can supply this government weed. Bromet follows seasoned grower John - who wanted to run his nursery as legally and transparently as possible, but still lost everything after a lawsuit - and the businessmen of plan C who want to grow cannabis for the first time. Bromet also interviews coffee shop owners, politicians involved and both supporters and opponents. A follow-up documentary was made in 2024.

Documentary about one of the most talked-about Dutch renovations of the moment: the redesign of Soestdijk Palace. The ambitious renovation team, stakeholders, and opponents are followed for several years.

Frans Bromet goes in search of his family history and discovers that Hermanus Bromet was a well-known slave trader in Suriname. Should he feel guilty for what his ancestor did? How do you deal with a burdened family past?

Documentary about the monument Joods Werkdorp.

A David versus Goliath documentary. One man versus the Health Care Organizations, fighting for better and affordable health care.

Beukbergen is a documentary that paints a comprehensive picture of the large-scale renovation of the Beukbergen trailer park, the largest trailer park in the Netherlands. This documentary, broadcast on NPO 2, offers a unique look behind the scenes of a project that is drastically changing the lives of many people.

A love tattoo is done in no time, but what do you do with the tattoo when the love is over? Frans Bromet goes in search of the stories behind the tattoo during Valentine's week.

A documentary can be that simple and effective. Three grandfathers and three grandmothers tell their grandchildren about their experiences during the Second World War. When they were still children themselves. One was in hiding and was abused, the other had a wonderful childhood in the Groningen countryside.

An iconoclastic first film from the headstrong teenagers of the 1,2,3 Group, who took turns to write, direct, and star in a series of irreverent skits.

You are Jewish when your mother is too. But when a Jewish mother is absent, it is still possible to become Jewish, namely through the phenomenon of 'coming out'. Frans Bromet portrays various individuals preparing to come out: people who are already Jewish and rabbis—Orthodox and Liberal—who make coming out possible, sometimes against their will.

In the small village of Noord Rhoon, a group of concerned citizens has established a Citizens' Watch. Frans Bromet investigates. The emergence of citizens' watches is a clear trend in the Netherlands. Hardly a village or neighborhood remains free of the 'WhatsApp Neighborhood Watch' sign. The centralization of government over the past decades has led, particularly in smaller municipalities, to a subtle but visible deterioration of the living environment. The space created by increasingly distant local government is being filled by residents. They organize themselves on social media and, for example, conduct patrols through the neighborhood. But to what extent is such a citizens' watch desirable? How does the local government deal with this? And where does the line lie between civic duty and meddling?

Documentary about whistleblower Frits Veerman, who in the 1970s exposed the nuclear espionage at Urenco in which his Pakistani colleague Abdul Khan smuggled nuclear data out of the country. He was fired and fought for 40 years for rehabilitation. Frans Bromet examines the moral compass of the headstrong whistleblower in the politically shadowy and high-profile espionage scandal. Bromet wants to understand what underlies years of backroom politics, an intelligence agency that refuses to grant access to the file, and international interests that apparently prevail over the protection of an observant citizen by his government. The fact that the Dutch State takes no responsibility in this matter weighs heavily, literally and figuratively, on Veerman. The threat of a nuclear bomb remains real. Will a potential rehabilitation offer the satisfaction he has been waiting for forty years?

Grandpa Koos (89) is a widower and still lives independently, but he is becoming lonely and his health is deteriorating. He does not want to spend his last years in a nursing home. Daughter-in-law Anita suggests that he could come and live with them in the garden. One day, a brand-new, ready-made care home is hoisted into the garden.

Eduard van Dijk's home has become uninhabitable. While clearing it out, emotional memories of his father, who died as a resistance fighter in the Natzweiler concentration camp, surface for Eduard. In Verstopt, Bromet follows an old friend of Eduard's: Vera. She helps to make Eduard's house habitable again. During the clearing process, it becomes clear how strongly Eduard is attached to all his belongings: with every book he picks up, he has a special memory. Will Vera succeed in making the house habitable again? And will Eduard manage to part with the items to which he feels so emotionally connected?

In 'Leve deorgaan', Frans Bromet delves into the world of organ donation and the ethical dilemmas involved. What does it actually mean to sign up as an organ donor?

How do you navigate as a young Islamic woman in a society whose morality seems to be at odds with how you are supposed to behave according to your own Muslim community? And how do you deal with the religious rules of your own community? Yeter Akin and Frans Bromet explore this in 'A Good Muslim Woman'.

Dutch men commit suicide twice as often as women. Why is that? Filmmaker Frans Bromet investigates, together with journalist Nathan Vos, what is going on with men.

In the late 1970s, filmmaker Frans Bromet worked on a film about Holocaust survivor and painter Sieg Maandag. The film was intended to answer the question of how one can continue living after a concentration camp. Sieg Maandag was the little boy in the famous photo in the American magazine LIFE, walking towards his freedom shortly after the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. The film 'Life’s Picture' was never completed at the time due to a conflict between Bromet and the producer, who envisioned a heroic film about the Second World War, whereas Bromet wanted to keep it small and personal. Behind the search for answers to the question of why the film failed, a loving monument emerges to a survivor who, despite the misery he endured, managed to create a life in which optimism and inspiration predominated.

The arrival of the taxi app Uber is causing anger among existing taxi drivers. If the police do not intervene, they take matters into their own hands. In Taxibotsing, Frans Bromet follows the battle waged by the established taxi world against Uber, a small online program that aims to eventually dominate the Dutch transport market. The battle is being fought on various levels. While the courts must determine whether the UberPop service is illegal (because drivers lack a license or do not pay taxes), the newcomer is an unpleasant reality for established taxi drivers. Livelihood theft, as well as resentment over colleagues going to work for the despised enemy, is turning the atmosphere on the streets grim.

Whistleblowers stick their necks out by exposing workplace misconduct. This is usually not appreciated. Filmmaker Frans Bromet speaks with whistleblowers about the far-reaching consequences that 'whistleblowing' has on their lives. The lives of the whistleblowers Bromet speaks to are irreparably damaged. Amidst stacks of binders and newspaper articles about what happened, the personal drama unfolds.

Making mistakes is human. But when doctors make mistakes, it often has far-reaching consequences. Frans Bromet speaks with doctors who have made serious medical errors. Talking about mistakes is by no means a matter of course within the medical profession. The trust that the patient places in the doctor proves to be a great asset. Betraying that trust is a devastating experience for the medical professionals. Yet they are willing to speak openly ‘because otherwise you deny the patient and their family the opportunity to understand, to process what has happened.’ But above all, because you can only learn from mistakes by making them open for discussion. Only then can hospitals actually take measures or implement improvements.

You usually don't stop to think when you get into your car that the moment could be very close when you could cause a fatal accident. Yet, this happens to a few hundred people every year. In one fell swoop, five motorized road users talk about the consequences for their lives following this traumatic event. Together with Frans Bromet, they return to the scene of the accident.

Frans Bromet delves into a mysterious feud that has divided his family for decades. Its origins lie in a conflict that arose on the Jewish side of the family after the Second World War.

Care in the Netherlands is deeply embedded in our social system. However, care has become unaffordable; something must change to curb costs. The Municipality of Rotterdam has therefore put care in its municipality out to tender with the aim of offering a new, affordable form of care. The deployment of volunteers is intended to bring down costs. Full of enthusiasm, the new care workers are embarking on their mission, leaving the old organizations that previously performed the work destitute.

The first cigarette. It begins so innocently, recklessly, and carefree. Like puppy love whose consequences you cannot yet foresee. For budding love grows into an addiction with all the consequences that entails, which unfortunately often also heralds the beginning of the end. Burning Desire is a kaleidoscopic and intimate narrative in which smokers speak about their great love, the cigarette. And what smoking brought them, but above all, what it has taken away. They are living on borrowed time. The love has proven irreversible.

In 1995, Frans Bromet created the successful series Opvoeden (Raising Children), in which he portrayed families facing significant parenting challenges. Twenty years later, Frans looks back on the difficult childhoods of the now-adult children. As ‘products’ of their parents, are the protagonists capable of taking a completely different approach, or does the parenting style they inherited prove to be deeply embedded in their DNA?

For several decades, the hard core of Ajax supporters has used the derogatory term 'Jews'. This provokes reactions from the opposing side that are antisemitic or appear so, whether intended or not, and which are experienced by many Jews as deeply offensive. Should the use of this derogatory term in, for example, chants be banned or permitted? And where does the association of Ajax with Jews actually come from? This documentary provides a comprehensive and varied picture of the background to this issue. Jewish Ajax supporters, administrators, Amsterdammers, and Israeli Ajax fans, as well as non-Jewish Ajax supporters, administrators, and opponents, share their perspectives.

In 'Homopesten', Frans Bromet paints a shocking picture of homophobia in the Netherlands. Helen is a lesbian and is bullied by her neighbors. They urinate in her garden, vandalize the walls, and throw feces at the windows.

Frans Bromet, like 3.5 million Dutch people, is trying to lose excess weight. On his daughter's advice, he visits a gym in Purmerend. There he meets the likeable but tough fitness instructor Daniëlle de Boer, who is eager to help him. She tackles her clients in a militant manner. Bromet has his doubts.

Frans Bromet follows Anna-Titia (42). She has rheumatism, arthritis and a hereditary condition that makes her tired quickly and walk poorly.

Frans Bromet made a documentary about the 2002 Dutch parliamentary elections. As an undecided voter, Frans interviews the party leaders Paul Rosenmöller (GroenLinks), Pim Fortuyn (LPF), Thom de Graaf (D66), Jan Marijnissen (SP), Fred Teeven (LN), and Hans Dijkstal (VVD) about their election manifestos. He tries to find out who he should vote for.

Autobiographical documentary in which Frans Bromet persuades his Jewish father, who has not set foot in Germany since 1931, to cross the border. Director Frans Bromet's Jewish father has not set foot on German soil since 1931. In this documentary, the filmmaker follows his parents and a befriended couple on May 4th, as they commemorate the dead near the tri-border point in Vaals. He tries to persuade his father to cross the border—illegally—into the deeply hated neighboring country. A physically small, but mentally enormous step that leads to remarkable reflections.

Report by Frans Bromet on self-organizations of immigrants in the Netherlands and the role these organizations play in the integration of immigrants into Dutch society. Bromet visits, among other places, a radio studio in Nijmegen where a program for Somalis is being recorded, the 'bowling for Turkish families' package by STGT, and an information evening about politics in the Netherlands for immigrant women. Some activities explicitly aim for integration, while for others, integration is at best a side effect.

Documentary by Frans Bromet about the potential danger of flooding in his hometown of Ilpendam in North Holland as a result of climate change.

Documentary filmmaker Frans Bromet portrays the Arnhem neighborhood of Klarendal through the eyes of its residents, organizations, activities, and problems. The neighborhood is on the list of forty problem neighborhoods announced in 2007 by Ella Vogelaar, Minister of Housing, Neighborhoods, and Integration. Under the 'Vogelaar approach,' the neighborhoods on this list are subject to a multi-year, comprehensive restructuring, in which government bodies collaborate with housing corporations and social, community, and cultural institutions established in the area. Together with the residents, Bromet questions whether such a restructuring is necessary and, if so, how it can best be implemented.

A six-part series about the life of Gied Jaspars, told to Frans Bromet.

Documentary series by Frans Bromet about the relationship between man and his best friend: the dog.

Frans Bromet seeks out representatives of various right-wing movements, opinion leaders, and parties. He wants to know what their vision of the future Netherlands looks like. What do they stand for, rather than what are they against?

Raoul Heertje and Frans Bromet travel to Israel. The country they know well and with which they both feel inextricably linked, partly due to their Jewish background. But also the country that raises questions, irritation, and sometimes anger in them because of the social, political, and religious developments.

Uit elkaar is a two-part documentary by filmmakers Frans and Silvia Bromet. They followed couples who are forced to live separately after a long marriage. One of them has dementia, and living at home is no longer possible. What do you do then?

Programme maker Frans Bromet visits eight public libraries with camera and microphone and speaks to visitors, staff, and volunteers. The idea that libraries are boring institutions where you only go to borrow books and CDs turns out to be completely outdated. Everyone is welcome in the library, it is a pleasant place to spend time, and not unimportantly: the library is the only public place that is accessible for free all day long. From the homeless person to the millionaire and from the student to the pensioner: the library is a place where the whole of the Netherlands comes together.

Frans Bromet and Stef Biemans send each other video letters about the children from their village. Stef lives in Masaya, Nicaraguan, and Frans lives in Ilpendam, North Holland.

Mortgage advisor Remco Trommel has found the Holy Grail: if you give terminally ill patients an advance on their life insurance, which is only paid out after their death, clients can realize their dream before they die.

Three friends decide to realize their dream: their own wellness center. After all, everyone wants to enjoy themselves these days. But will their optimism and drive withstand the financial crisis?

De Bezem door de Wallen is a triptych about the municipality's approach to tackling crime and decay in Amsterdam's Red Light District. The plan is to close a large number of prostitution windows and coffeeshops in the city center via Project 1012 and to consolidate the remaining ones. In the words of the municipality, these sectors are criminogenic, or susceptible to crime. Documentary filmmaker Frans Bromet follows window operators, prostitutes, and owners of coffeeshops, gambling halls, and sex theaters.

Jan van der Prijt lost hundreds of thousands of euros on the stock market due to the crisis. He hopes to recoup his losses through investments in land. For Albert van Bekkum, investing is a sport. His accountant says he has a keen sense for prime locations. The first real estate investors in Montenegro are doing good business. But the high returns to be had on the land soon disappear. Vincent and Wladimir believe there is good money to be made in real estate and decide to build a luxury apartment complex on Montenegrin land. Construction begins before the complex is fully financed. It is important that the apartments are sold quickly, otherwise there will be no money to complete the project. However, the credit crisis throws a spanner in the works. Potential investors become wary and put their money into savings accounts.

Lidy sees terrifying apparitions in her cottage. She hears strange noises in the attic and sees chains moving. She has also already been dragged down the attic stairs by someone. Frans Bromet and energy house cleanser Lise come to her aid.

The young, entrepreneurial brothers Edial and Floris Dekker dream of owning their own internet company and leave for Berlin after their studies to make their dream a reality. 'Startup city' Berlin is a gathering place for ambitious young people and a breeding ground for countless internet startup companies. The brothers launch the website Gidsy, where organizers of small-scale local activities can connect with potential participants. Whether you want a tour of Amsterdam's Red Light District, to search for oysters in the Oosterschelde, or do life drawing in Berlin, you will find it on Gidsy. Edial and Floris soon manage to interest a few investors, including the famous actor Ashton Kutcher, to invest $1.2 million in their fledgling company.

Buren deals with the phenomenon of neighbor disputes and is presented by Frans Bromet. In the program, neighbors discuss the disagreements they have with each other. Both parties are given equal opportunities to express their dissatisfaction. In some cases, Bromet attempts to resolve the conflict.

In this four-part series, Frans Bromet talks to former Dutch East Indies fighters about their experiences during the armed conflict between the Netherlands and Indonesia. 'Boy, in the Indies, keep your head up, there in the land of Emeralds'—with this song, the viewer is confronted in every episode with the portrait of a young Dutch East Indies fighter.

A series of reports by program makers Peter van Ingen and Frans Bromet. They head out together, both armed with a camera; using questions, they attempt to uncover the meaning of concepts that are frequently heard in society but often thought-out. To reinforce their questions, they film each other, exactly as they interview their guests.

In this four-part documentary series, Frans Bromet engages in conversation with a wide variety of people about God, heaven, and hell. For example, three eleven-year-old girls, a developmental psychologist, and a professor of philosophy of technology speak about whether life gets better if you believe in God and whether there is still room for them in heaven.

Documentary filmmaker Frans Bromet goes in search of local political life and has chosen Enkhuizen as his subject of study. Over the course of six episodes, he follows a number of politicians from local parties and attempts to expose the political relationships between the parties to the viewer.

In this series of five feature-length reports, the theme of 'assistance' takes center stage in the broadest sense of the word. Documentary filmmaker Frans Bromet delves into the lives of care providers and those in need of help at the invitation of various care organizations.

Two-part documentary in which filmmaker Frans Bromet follows the events surrounding the functional obsolescence of two churches in the municipality of Weesp. Due to the PKN merger within the Protestant community, the Maarten Luther Church and the Reformed Church Centre Hogewey are losing their regular churchgoers. What to do with these buildings of devotion and faith?

Two-part documentary in which documentary maker Frans Bromet, a non-investor by principle himself, follows a number of private investors. Bromet wants to find out what drives private investors at a time when the financial crisis is striking and some are making heavy losses while others are making enormous profits. In addition, he joins several investors on an investment strategy training course for beginners and, later, for advanced investors.

We all have them: questions we don't dare ask our dearest family members. Simply because the subject is too sensitive. Or because we think we already know the answer, or are actually afraid of it. This is grist to the mill for program maker and family portraitist Frans Bromet. He speaks extensively with the questioner beforehand and then has them ask the question directly to the family member. Just watch what bubbles up that was never spoken about before.