Mouse (2017)

Directed by: Christianne Altena | 10 minutes | short film | Actors: Kyra Verschuure, Tom Hattink, Silvana Durdevic, Robin Groeneveld

Visual artist and director in training Christianne Altena is of Zeeland descent and, because of her interest in film, is studying at the Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. In 2016 she took on an assisting director role, together with Dirk Elsen, for the short film ‘Christmas with Guus’ by Lennart Gosman. A year later she continues the collaboration with Gosman (this time as a cameraman). Animals are a source of inspiration in many of Altena’s works and, as the title suggests, this is also the case in her latest study project. ‘Mouse’ premiered at the 19th edition of the International Film Festival Film by the Sea, which for many is an excellent opportunity to share his or her passion for film (direction) with a wider audience.

Katja (Kyra Verschuure) goes out with her dad (Tom Hattink) and his new girlfriend (Silvana Derdevic). That Katja still has to get used to the situation that her father is no longer with her mother and the fact that attention is no longer solely focused on her, is apparent from her thoughts, which are made known with the help of a voice-over. The only thing that feels familiar is her cuddly mouse, a soft-looking cuddly toy with a funny little face. Once in a French hotel, however, the mouse gives her ‘naughty’ ideas. In the evening, for example, at the insistence of the mouse, she enters the hotel room when the two lovebirds are playing dirty. When the so-called bad influence of mouse seems to increase, Katja makes a childishly wise decision.

Subtly but strikingly enough, almost every scene contains an object of Mickey Mouse, also known as the friend of the children, which slightly increases the contrast between sweet and naughty mouse. Katja blames her stuffed animal, which preserves a child’s innocence. The adult acting isn’t too good, rather contrived, and what should be a loving bond between father and daughter doesn’t come across as very strong or credible. Telling a story in less than ten minutes is a challenge, but Altena makes wise use of black transitions to bridge time and provide each scene with a new little adventure. Altena shows that she understands the art of filmmaking, but in ‘Mouse’ the made-up story is more creative than its translation into images.