The Dutch-Flemish production Lena by Isabella Films has won the Youth Jury Prize at the International Film Festival in Wiesbaden, Germany. The film, starring Emma Ruth Levie, Niels Gomperts, Agata Buzek, Lisa Smit, Rifka Lodeizen, and of course Jeroen Willems, who passed away far too young this week, was written by Mieke de Jong and directed by Christophe van Rompaey.

Lena is about 16-year-old Lena (Emma Levie), an overweight girl who lives with her unstable mother. When she dances, she forgets that she is fat and doesn't have a nice boyfriend. Everything changes when she meets Daan (Niels Gomperts) and his father Tom (Jeroen Willems), and a complicated love triangle develops.

Since its world premiere in Toronto (2012), the film has screened at more than 30 international film festivals. Actress Emma Levie was awarded at the Les Arcs Film Festival in France and at Fantasporto in Portugal. In the Netherlands, Lena received two Golden Calf nominations, for the lead role of Niels Gomperts and the sound design. The film is now available on DVD.



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