Jesse Bleekemolen

Do you need drugs to have ecstatic sex? The documentary F*CK DRUGS explores (group) sex under the influence of drugs, a phenomenon that is becoming increasingly common among queer men. The film follows Davo (22), Anthony (35), and Erik (61) and shows how they explore and push their boundaries further and further within the world of chemsex. Is it about boundless pleasure and sexual freedom, or rather about inner emptiness and the fear of true intimacy in a time of individualism and increasing loneliness? The documentary examines the world of chemsex in a liberating, honest, and ecstatic, but also critical and confrontational way. In doing so, the film poses the question: is there a way back after sex under the influence of drugs?

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Cheating together. That is how people describe the phenomenon of ‘swinging’. But is that really the case? Anyone who opens a conversation about swinging immediately encounters many prejudices. Swingers? They have sex with anyone and everyone, in an unsafe atmosphere, with unsavory types and withered bodies. And their relationship? Things simply can't go well with that. Fueled by ignorance, people fill an unknown world with stigmatizing fantasies – and thus a taboo is perpetuated. A shame, because according to swingers themselves, things are very different. Driven by curiosity, they explore the boundaries of monogamy. Never alone, but always together. Once a year, monthly, or every week. On a sunny island, in a hotel, on the internet, at home, or in the club. Director Jesse Bleekemolen dives into the world of swingers. With a look of wonder, he meets various couples who engage in swinging and are willing to share their vulnerabilities.

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In the first VPRO TikTok-based documentary series Geen hoekje voor ons (No Labels for Us), five young people define their own gender. Boy, girl, both, or neither: they decide for themselves who they are and how they want to go through life. In each episode, one of them is followed during an important step in his/her/their life. A step that contributes to who they are and how they want to express themselves.

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48-year-old former snowboarder Bibian Mentel has been living with cancer for 21 years, received the bad news no less than fourteen times that the cancer was back. The result: one leg amputation, five lung operations, three neck operations, four back operations and 74 radiation treatments. In March 2019 she ended up in a wheelchair due to one of the back operations. Despite all the operations and radiation treatments, there are still numerous metastases in her body. Although the situation seems worrying and hopeless, Bibian and her family refuse to let that rotten disease determine everything. Documentary maker Jesse Bleekemolen (22 years old) followed Bibian for a year with a very intimate portrait as a result of fighting spirit and her dance with death.

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In the docuseries *Nog één week* (One More Week), we follow children in the run-up to a major event that will change their lives. Each episode focuses on one of the children, following him or her in their daily life during the week leading up to the exciting event. Together with parents and friends, they look forward to it. Sometimes it is fun, sometimes exciting, sometimes sad, sometimes difficult. How do they cope? What do they find difficult, and what do they not? In this way, you see that every child experiences something in his or her own way.

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Milan and Sophie are two twentysomethings who want to marry and have children. Milan has ambitious plans for opening a dance club. After hard work, it seems to be a success. But one day, after getting beat up, Milan is told that he will never walk again. His world collapses and not just his...

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