EN - 6 lives. 24 hours. A hotel in the middle of a heat wave. Anna and Hendrik have it all: a great son, a good job, a lovely house… But the wedding they attend in the hotel forces them to reflect on the choices they have made. Hendrik is happy. Anna is not. ‘Is that all there is?’ she wonders. Especially when her lover shows up, asking her to run off with him to greener pastures…
Violette wants to reconcile with her daughter Vicky before she dies. But Vicky, a chambermaid in the hotel, finds it hard to forget old hurts. She takes care of Joyeux, a young African refugee hiding in the hotel from the police. She lets her mother believe the boy is her own son. After all, with her he’ll have a much better life… But then Amadou, Joyeux’ father, arrives at the hotel looking for his son. And the lives of all these people will be irrevocably intertwined. At least until the heat breaks and the rain offers some relief…
Hotel Swooni offers a surprising kaleidoscope of hopes and doubts, passion and betrayal, in which no one checks out quite the same as they checked in.
FR - 6 vies. 24 heures. Un hôtel au centre de la canicule. Anna et Hendrik ont tout pour eux : un fils formidable, un bon boulot, une maison agréable… Mais le mariage auquel ils assistent dans l’hôtel les force à réfléchir sur les choix qu’ils ont faits. Hendrik est heureux. Anna ne l’est pas. “La vie est-elle comme cela ? » se demande-t’elle. En particulier quand son compagnon débarque en lui demandant de s’en aller avec lui vers de plus verts pâturages...
Violette veut se réconcilier avec sa fille Vicky avant de mourir. Mais Vicky, une femme de chambre dans l’hôtel, a du mal à oublier les vieilles blessures. Elle prend soin de Joyeux, un jeune réfugié africain qui se cache de la police dans l’hôtel. Elle fait croire à sa mère que l’enfant est son propre fils. Après tout, avec elle, il aura une vie meilleure…Mais c’est alors qu’Amadou, le père de Joyeux, cherchant son enfant, arrive à l’hôtel. Les vies de toutes ces personnes vont être irrévocablement entrelacées. Au moins jusqu’à ce que la chaleur ne laisse place à une pluie offrant un peu de libération.
Hotel Swooni offre un kaléidoscope surprenant d’espoir et de doutes, de passion et de trahison, dans lequel personne ne fait le check out dans le même état que lors du check in.
Info
| Title | Hotel Swooni |
|---|---|
| Original title | Swooni |
| Original version | Dutch, French |
| Status | Completed |
| Category | Features |
| Year of production | 2011 |
Credits
| Cast | Geert Van Rampelberg, Viviane De Muynck, Sara De Roo, Natali Broods, Issaka Sawadogo |
|---|---|
| Screenplay | Annelies Verbeke, Michel Sabbe |
| Photography | Frank Van den Eeden |
| Editing | Philippe Ravoet |
| Music | Wim De Wilde |
Technical specs
| Running time film | 90' |
|---|---|
| Release format | 35mm |
| Aspect ratio | 1:1.85 |
| Sound format | Dolby SR |
| Colour | Colour |
Partners
| Supported by | Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF), Bruxellimage, VRT, Belgian Tax Shelter |
|---|
Hotel Swooni to screen at WIFF
The Women’s International Film Festival (28 March - 1 April) has confirmed Kaat Beels’ Hotel Swooni for its line-up. After Toronto and Chicago, it’s already the third North-American festival for Hotel Swooni.
In Hotel Swooni, we enter a hotel in the middle of a heat wave. We meet six people whose lives will become irrevocably intertwined. Or at least until the heat breaks and the rain offers some relief… Hotel Swooni is Kaat Beels’ debut feature and has already earned numerous other festivals, among which the Chicago International Film Festival, the Toronto international Film Festival, and the European Film Festival of Les Arcs, France.
Bullhead and Lena to compete in Les Arcs
Michaël R. Roskam’s Bullhead and Christophe Van Rompaey’s Lena are selected for Official Competition at the 3rd edition of the European Film Festival of Les Arcs, France (10-17 December). Also playing at the Fest's European Panorama is Hotel Swooni by Kaat Beels while the animated The Monster of Nix by Rosto is shown in the school programme.
A total of 12 features compete for the Crystal Arrow for Best Film awarded by the International Jury headed by Italian helmer Michele Placido. The prestigious Award comes with financial distribution support for the winning film in Europe and the rest of the world. Artistic director of les Arcs is Frédéric Boyer, who recently also got appointed as artistic director of the Tribeca Film Fest.
Hotel Swooni invited to Chicago
Kaat Beels’s feature debut Hotel Swooni has been confirmed for the New Directors Competition of the Chicago International Film Festival (6-20 October). With the selection of her debut from a pool of over 100 first and second films, Beels confirms her international reputation as a talent to watch.
Hotel Swooni premiered internationally at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival and is now making its US bow in Chicago. Not only has the film obtained a ticket for the New Directors Competition for first and second films, but it is is also programmed in the ReelWomen section, which focuses on ‘the input of female writers and directors’.
Hotel Swooni and Lena invited to Toronto
Kaat Beels’ Hotel Swooni and Christophe Van Rompaey’s Lena have been invited to this year’s 36th Toronto international Film Festival (8-18 September). Both films will be screening in the Fest’s Contemporary World Cinema programme, the section describes by the festival as being for ‘the best films from every corner of the earth’.
In Hotel Swooni, Kaat Beels’s debut feature, the lives of six people intertwine over the course of 24 hours in a hotel. As the city sweats through a sweltering heatwave, emotions start to run high… Hotel Swooni offers a surprising kaleidoscope of hopes and doubts, passion and betrayal, in which no one checks out quite the same as they checked in. The film is produced by Peter Bouckaert for Eyeworks Film & TV Drama, with Delphis Films handling international sales.
Heartbreak Hotel
Summer in the city. A hotel. A wedding. A woman in love. A deceived husband. An estranged daughter. A dying mother. A lost child. Fitting all of this and more into one movie was the challenge director Kaat Beels accepted for her debut feature, Hotel Swooni. Here she explains to us why.
Text Ian Mundell Portrait Bart Dewaele
'In the beginning I didn't hesitate about choosing a multi-plot, but while making it I started to think: "Oh my God, this is a difficult job!"' she says. 'You have less time to develop characters and all the stories have to mingle together. But I really enjoyed making it.'
The decision to work on a film with multiple plot lines dates back half a decade to a meeting with the writer, Annelies Verbeke. At that point Beels had an award-winning student short to her name, Bedtime Stories, an episode in the three-part featureBruxelles, mon amour, and further short film, Cologne. Producer Peter Bouckaert had seen her work and suggested the meeting with Verbeke.
Last edited on 6 May 2012