TalentScope 2025

TalentScope is the talent development programme for directors that the Netherlands Film Fund has been organising since 2024 in collaboration with FilmForward, ACE Producers, and TorinoFilmLab.

In 2025, four teams were selected for TalentScope, consisting of directors Sarah Blok, Emma Branderhorst, Shamira Raphaëla, and Noël Loozen. The Film Fund received 16 promising applications. These teams of makers pitched their projects to the selection committee, consisting of producer and TorinoFilmLab tutor Eilon Ratzkovsky, producer and ACE producer Julie Billy, film consultants Kaweh Modiri and Lotte Bronshoff, and Head of Selective Funding Iwana Chronis. The four selected teams and film projects are:

The Garden
Director/Screenwriter: Sarah Blok
Producer: Studio Ruba
Logline: In a remote Mexican beach town, Vinny and Thomas, a well-meaning Dutch couple, try to buy a large piece of land. But when they ask their new Mexican friends to lend their name for the contract, tensions rise, and moral contradictions surface.

All Inclusive Family
Director: Emma Branderhorst
Screenwriter: Helena van der Meulen
Producer: Iris Otten (Juliet at Pupkin)
Logline: Persuaded to go on an awkward vacation with her father’s new family, Nora (15) becomes even more confused when she discovers that he is hiding something from her. Then, she realizes that her father might need her more than she needs him.

Tierra Firme
Director: Shamira Raphaëla
Screenwriter: Shamira Raphaëla and Esther Duysker
Producer: Nynke Jurgens (KeyFilm)
Logline: In the 18th-century Caribbean, four women undertake a daring escape to Tierra Firme, a free community built by the formerly enslaved Isabel Curazao. Following in her footsteps, the women’s journey paints a heroic and hopeful story of resilience and (r)evolution.

The Island of Nose (Tom Tippelaar)
Director: Noël Loozen
Screenwriter: Saar Ponsioen
Producer: Layla Meijman (Studio Ruba)
Logline: Tom Tippelaar is bullied because of his strikingly large ears. But when he is sent on a mission to save the Island of Nose from a mysterious crisis, he must learn to rely on his extraordinary hearing. What follows is a fairytale adventure full of enchanting music, extraordinary characters, and unexpected courage.

Programme overview
June 23 – 27, 2025 | Week 1: Kick-off
The first week of TalentScope kicks off in Amsterdam with a workshop organised by TorinoFilmLab, ACE Producers, and FilmForward. The participating teams will have the opportunity to get to know each other and each other’s projects. Rebecca Day (Film in Mind) will also visit for team development.
Throughout TalentScope, the teams will be guided by script coach and producer Eilon Ratzkovsky (TorinoFilmLab).
July – September 2025 | Independent script development
During this period, the teams attend online sessions with script coach Eilon Ratzkovsky and Rebecca Day. The participants develop the treatment or screenplay of their projects independently and with their team, discuss them with the other teams and experts in the second week.
October 13 – 17, 2025 | Week 2: Deep Dive
This week, the teams dive into the script development of their project together with the other teams, under the guidance of Eilon Ratzkovsky. They also get started on the positioning and audience design of the film. TorinoFilmLab invites audience designer Greta Nordio for a number of practical sessions and a Masterclass in Audience Design. The teams also join the ACE Open Afternoon, and the producers discuss their initial financing plan with ACE Producers Ada Solomon and Marc Irmer.
November 2025 – January 2026 | Independent Script Development
During this period, the teams attend online sessions with script coach Eilon Ratzkovsky, Rebecca Day, audience designer Greta Nordio, and producer Konstantinos Kontrovrakis. Konstantinos prepares the teams for the Berlinale. Additionally, they attend pitch training with industry professional Ido Abram.
February 2026 | Berlinale 2026
The final days of TalentScope take place at the Berlinale, where the teams begin script coaching with Eilon Ratzkovsky. The festival offers many opportunities to expand the teams’ international network, visit the market, and watch an inspiring selection of films.

TalentScope 2025

Programme overview

Selected teams