Van Vugt is best known internationally for her 2013 Krakow Film Festival winner ‘Borders’.

The multi-character drama consists of three stories that intertwine in real time during a ferry-boat crossing from Morocco to Spain. Desperate in their fear of loss, the protagonists struggle to find a way to reach each other, but their powerlessness leaves room for the inevitable.

The co-production between Revolver Amsterdam, Belgium’s A Private’s View and Croatia’s Nukleus Filmstars features Dutch actors Hadewych Minis (A Perfectly Normal Family, Toni Erdmann) and Gijs Naber (The Story of My Wife, My Foolish Heart) as well as Moroccan actress Soumaya Akaaboune (Looking for Oum Kulthum, Green Zone).

Most heads of departments are seasoned Dutch and Croatian professionals, including DoP Gregor Meerman (My Rembrandt), production manager Nikolina Koceić (Goltzius and the Pelican Company), production designer Kurt Rigolle (The Broken Circle Breakdown), make-up designer Ana Bulajić Ćrček (The Constitution) and costume designer Zorana Meić (My Grandpa Is an Alien).

“The film is set in Morocco and Spain, but the filming will be done in Croatia, which is challenging in itself. Still, the experienced and well-prepared crew we will be working with in Croatia will make it that much easier,” says executive producer Germen Boelens, of Revolver Amsterdam.

Nukleus Film’s Siniša Juričić adds: “The filming is very challenging. The crew gets tested every two days; the director remains in her so-called ‘bubble’ along with only a handful of other people… We have made a great effort in terms of security, with the Netherlands Film Fund having provided financial support in that regard. I should also point out that the Croatian Audiovisual Centre was very helpful in providing assistance with bringing our actress over from Morocco, which is currently a country without a visa or diplomatic system.”

‘Crossing’ is supported by the Netherlands Film Fund, the Flanders Audiovisual Fund and the Croatian Audiovisual Centre.