The international film festival held annually in Rotterdam is well-regarded in film circles but the Netherlands is one of those countries whose cinemagoers favour Hollywood blockbusters - some of which have either had Dutch directors such as Paul Verhoeven ( ; ) at the helm or have featured Dutch thespians such as Rutger Hauer ( ) and Famke Janssen ( ).
In recent years, however, two types of Dutch films have done well at the local box office: those with a multicultural feel (such as and - both comedies with Dutch-Moroccan main characters); and family films, especially adaptations of well-known children's novels.
Zambian-born director Dennis Bots' is one of those works that falls squarely into both categories.
A hit adaptation of a children's novel by Jacques Vriens (who makes a cameo appearance as a bicyclist in the film) with fans in Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany as well as the Netherlands, this child-centric drama tells the story of Akkie (Hanna Obbeek), a soccer-obsessed eighth grader whose life dramatically changes after she is diagnosed with leukaemia.
A popular girl in her class at Martin Luther King School (in the Netherlands), the blue-eyed blonde is surrounded throughout the film by a number of interesting characters.
Although she could be said to be something of a tomboy, Akkie's friends are mostly female. Her circle also includes the artistic Laurens (Bram Flick) and the shy but loyal Brammetje (Amin Belyandouz).