De Mensen

An early success for the group was the series Hotel Beau Séjour in 2015, which explored loss and grief through a supernatural story. It was one of the first series from Flanders to be picked up by Netflix and was commissioned for a second season. De Mensen also made the original Professor T crime series, which has been remade for several international territories, most notably the UK.

De Mensen’s success in fiction went to another level with Undercover, a series about a Belgian-Dutch police operation to catch a drug dealer called Ferry at the campsite where he spends his weekends. It started as a co-production between Flemish public broadcaster VRT and Netflix, together with other partners, and ran for three seasons, before spawning a spin-off series and 2 feature films around the character of Ferry.

“The fact that showrunner Nico Moolenaar and his writing team are now working exclusively for Netflix says a lot about the creativity in Flanders,” says Vanhaecke. At the time of signing in 2022, this was the first local creative partnership Netflix had agreed with a screenwriter in the Benelux.

At the same time, De Mensen has continued to experiment. “We like new challenges, including new ways of financing productions,” says Vanhaecke. “Sophie Cross, for example, is a show we created ourselves, with a Flemish writer [Paul Piedfort] and director [Frank Van Mechelen], and it was made with a Flemish crew, but the financing came from abroad.”

This missing-child drama was produced for France Télévisions in France, and ndF and ARD in Germany, with the support of Screen Flanders, the Belgian Tax Shelter and RTBF, the French-speaking Belgian public broadcaster.

Forthcoming from De Mensen is Breendonk, a drama series set during the Second World War, about four people trying to live, love and survive in and around the Breendonk camp. This was where captured members of the Belgian resistance were held prisoner, under the supervision of Flemish guards and the SS

“Breendonk is a passion project for us, and for the actor Kevin Janssens, who not only came to us with the idea, but also co-wrote, co-directed and acted in the series,” says Vanhaecke. Janssens is known internationally for films such as Patrick, Close and Revenge, and for series such as Rough Diamonds.

Behind the camera, he was paired with Filip Lenaerts (Team Chocolate, Tourist) as co-director and co-writer. On screen, he appears alongside veteran Flemish actor Koen De Bouw (Julie Keeps Quiet, Professor T) and his son Jolan De Bouw (Gangstas), which will be the first time the pair have appeared on screen together. The female lead is Anne-Laure Vandeputte (Grenslanders, Kind).

The most important location for the series was the camp itself, which is now a museum. “But they closed it for a couple of weeks so that our crew could shoot there. That allowed us to show the setting in an authentic way,” says Vanhaecke. “We also shot at a lot of locations in and around Antwerp, including Liberation Day on the city’s main square.”

The production was supported by the VAF Media Fund and Screen Flanders, with early backing from VRT. The Flemish public broadcaster brought the project to New8, an alliance of public broadcasters that includes ZDF in Germany, NPO in the Netherlands and five Scandinavian broadcasters.

“We coproduced this series with Anagram from Norway, and they brought in the Norwegian Film Fund, and we also attached Streamz, RTBF and Studio TF1 for the international sales,” says Vanhaecke.

While Breendonk tells a story specific to a moment in Belgian history, it will also have international appeal. “In times of conflict, like we see today, the themes of Breendonk are very relevant and relatable,” says Vanhaecke.

It should also make a point about the local industry. “We also wanted to show that you can make a high-quality historical series entirely in Belgium, with Belgian talent, crew and locations.”

The series will have its world premiere in the International Panorama competition at Séries Mania. 

De Mensen has experience in every aspect of producing, and prides itself on the resources it can draw upon, such as its own post-production unit and Tax Shelter operation. “Being part of the Studio TF1 group also connects us to a lot of international partners,” says Vanhaecke.

The company aims for strong content, made to a high quality, that resonates with national and international audiences. And while it has produced films and series in most genres, it does not play favourites.

Vanhaecke is also a strong supporter of the local industry. “Flanders has a lot of talent,” she says. “It’s a combination of creativity and the ability to do a lot with limited budgets. High quality is standard in everything we do.”