Stage and competition for Nordic film talent
Noorderkroon
Noorderkroon is the stage and competition for professional, student and amateur films by filmmakers from Friesland, Groningen or Drenthe, or films about this region. ‘Noorderkroon’ is a small constellation in the northern sky, formed by seven visible stars. These stars symbolise the seven awards we present to our own stars, the Northern filmmakers. In 2025, awards were presented in the following categories: Best Feature Film, Best Documentary, Best Short Film (fiction), Best Short Documentary, Best Student Film, Best New Maker and Greatest Upcoming Talent.
This is the Noorderkroonselection of 2025:
Best Feature Film
- The North – Bart Schrijver
- Vlam – Daphne Lucker
- HalloWiebe – Jasper ten Hoor & Ivan Hidayat
Best Documentary
- Weerbarstig – Wouter Klinkenberg
- Ik was een kind – Geertjan Lassche
- Yn myn dreamen hear ik dy – Murk-Jaep van der Schaaf
Beste short fiction
- Koud water – Ayan Egal & Alexander Roux
- Pocongdorie – Jasper ten Hoor & Ivan Hidayat
- Blau – Antonia Rehnen
Best Short documentary
- Met huid en haar – Jasper van Leeningen
- De jaren waarin ik niet film – Froukje van Wengerden
- Wie schrijft die weet – Sibrich Wijnia
Best Student Film
- De anatomie van een meermin – Carmen Maria
- Super duper mega fan – Sarah van der Pers
- Tussen Hemel en Zalen – Olivia Mos
Best New Maker
- Echoes of Tomorrow – Marit Hofman
- Écht? – Jonathan Bergsma & Jonathan Sipkema
- Fine Tonight – Rudy Niemeijer
Explanation per category:
Best Feature Film
The best medium-length or feature-length film (minimum 30 minutes) made by a filmmaker (director, screenwriter or producer) with a strong connection to the Northern Netherlands (born, living or working in the region), or with a distinct Northern Dutch signature, both in terms of theme and execution.
Best Documentary
The best medium-length or feature-length documentary (minimum 30 minutes) made by a filmmaker (director, screenwriter or producer) with a strong connection to the Northern Netherlands (born, living or working in the region), or with a distinct Northern Dutch character in both theme and execution.
Best Short Film (fiction)
The best short fiction film up to 30 minutes, by a filmmaker (director, screenwriter or producer) with a demonstrable link to the Northern Netherlands, or with a distinct Northern Dutch signature, both in theme and execution.
Best Short Documentary
The best short documentary up to 30 minutes, by a filmmaker (director, screenwriter or producer) with a demonstrable link to the Northern Netherlands, or with a distinct Northern Dutch signature, both in theme and execution.
Best Student Film
The best graduation film by a recent graduate of a recognised Dutch film or art school. Foreign schools are also eligible, provided the filmmaker has a demonstrable connection with the Northern Netherlands. The filmmaker must have graduated no more than two years ago.
Best New Maker
The best film by a self-taught filmmaker or filmmaker without formal film training.
Below you will find the winners of the Noordelijk Film Festival 2025
- Best feature film: Vlam by Daphne Luckers
- Best documentary: Yn myn dreamen hear ik dy by Murk-Jaep van der Schaaf
- Best short fiction film: Pocongdorie by Jasper ten Hoor & Ivan Hidayat
- Best short documentary: Met huid en haar by Jasper van Leeningen
- Best studentfilm: Super Duper Mega Fan by Sarah van der Pers
- Best new maker: Écht? by Jonathan Bergsma & Jonathan Sipkema
- Greatest upcoming talent: Koud Water by Ayan Egal & Alexander Roux
Participate in 2026?
These are the rules
- Northern Netherlands region: Friesland, Groningen and/or Drenthe.
- Produced in the year 2025, the film has not been screened at the Noordelijk Film Festival before. When selecting, preference will be given to films that have not been publicly published online.
- For the selection process, films should be submitted via protected online streaming (a link to Vimeo + login code or a private video on YouTube, for example). This link should remain available until the festival for possible judging.
- Selected films should be delivered as DCP via filemail at a later stage. Not familiar with making a DCP? Then we have an easy guide for that here.
- The festival reserves the right to use the submitted works and publicity material for the promotion of the film, the filmmaker and the festival.
- The contact person will be notified if his/her film is selected and possibly nominated.
- No correspondence will be entered into regarding the selection, nominations and results of the competition.
- After the festival, there will be an opportunity for the winning films to go on a regional tour of movie houses and cinemas. The exact details will follow later and we will contact the winners about this.
Selected?
We invite all filmmakers to attend the screening(s) of their selected film at the Noordelijk Film Festival and, where possible, to do a Q&A with the audience and fellow filmmakers. The selected films will be presented throughout the festival and the crowning of nominated films will take place at a festive awards ceremony.