When My Dad Became a Bush (2016)

Directed by: Nicole van Kilsdonk | 90 minutes | action, adventure, drama, family, war | Actors: Celeste Holsheimer, Matsen Montsma, Noortje Herlaar, Teun Kuilboer, Anneke Blok, Puck van Stijn, Britte Lagcher, Jobst Schnibbe, Leny Breederveld, Jef Hoogmartens

How do you explain the refugee crisis to children? What do you say when they ask why there is war in certain countries? And what is it like to live in another country, whose language and culture you do not know? In 2010, the multi-award winning children’s book author Joke van Leeuwen wrote the book ‘When my father became a bush’, in which all these questions are answered. In that typical, idiosyncratic style that characterizes Van Leeuwen’s work, she wrote about the brave girl Toda who has to flee a fictitious war in an unnamed country. Along the way she meets all kinds of people who try to save their skin in their own way; some have good intentions, others less so. Nicole van Kilsdonk (known for the award-winning youth film ‘Patatje Krijg’ from 2012 and the book adaptation ‘Ventoux’ from 2014) has now adapted Van Leeuwen’s book into a film. Film and playwright Maureen Versprille adapted the story into a screenplay. “The subject is close to my heart,” says Versprille. “I wanted to tell something about children who are left to their own devices, who get lost in this world because adults make a mess of it. But no misery so great that the humor rears its absurd head. Lucky I would say. It’s nice when you get the chance in a story to let one reinforce the other.”

Toda (played by ten-year-old Celeste Holsheimer) lives with her father (Teun Kuilboer), a pastry chef who can make up to twenty kinds of pastries. When war breaks out in the country between ‘the one’ and ‘the others’, he becomes a soldier because he has to defend ‘the one’. Toda wonders why; some of ‘the others’ are friends, right? Before her father leaves, he shows his soldier’s handbook. Here’s how to camouflage yourself. From that moment on, Toda sees her father as a hidden bush. After his departure grandma (Anneke Blok) looks after Toda. But the war is getting close and it’s getting too dangerous. For her own safety, Toda has to flee to the neighboring country where her mother (Noortje Herlaar) lives. It is not clear why she lives so far away from her daughter, but it is not too important for the story. Toda leaves, but the journey is fraught with danger and unexpected encounters: a bus driver demands money to take her across the border, a retired general and his wife want to adopt her, and a deserted commander who cannot command is arrested before her eyes. Toda befriends a boy she calls ‘Plakkie’ (Matsen Montsma). As soon as they cross the border, Toda wants to visit her mother, but is shocked to discover that she has lost the address. Will she ever find her mother, whom she has never seen in real life…?

‘When my father became a bush’ reduces a heavy theme such as fleeing war to proportions that are recognizable and manageable for children. The story is told from the point of view of the child and is full of pure, original observations. The absurdism from Van Leeuwen’s book has been cleverly translated to the silver screen by Van Kilsdonk and Versprille. A striking scene, for example, is the one in which the refugee children repeatedly have to express their gratitude for the broken toys they are given; it is never good enough. The serious undertone and a realistic sketch of the situation are abstract enough to offer room for fantasy and idiosyncrasy. In addition, Celeste Holsheimer is perfect for the role of the fearless Toda, who looks at the world openly and with wonder and learns to stand up for herself and for others. Her observations are touching one minute, funny the next. Holsheimer is a great talent, from whom we will probably hear a lot in the future. The film was shot in Croatia, a country that itself was torn apart by war twenty to twenty-five years ago, and shot with a largely Croatian crew. People who have experienced the war up close and who show this strikingly in their work.

‘When My Father Became a Bush’ is an adventurous road movie that makes it clear in an accessible way what it means when you have to leave home as a child because you are on the run from a war, and which also shows the absurdity of the refugee crisis. show through the eyes of a child. A very heavy subject, presented lightly and with humor, without losing sight of the seriousness of the situation. This film is not only educational for children, adults can also get a lot out of this.