Carice van Heusden
Carice van Heusden is a young filmmaker from the Netherlands who currently resides in Brussels. Her passion for film was ignited at an early age, inspired by the power of storytelling and the visual possibilities inherent in the medium. This profound appreciation for cinema ultimately led her to Brussels, where she has further developed her creativity and immersed herself in the world of film at the RITCS School of Arts.
In my work, I focus on the female perspective and the ongoing search for the meaning of the female gaze, as well as the psychological influence this search has on the subjective viewing experience. I use a research-based methodology, which I then translate into cinematic work, drawing inspiration from the subjective nature of film. This gives my films a more experimental and surrealistic character, resulting in intimate works that explore the complexity of the human psyche and human relationships. Beyond the discipline of film, I aspire to break open the defined boundaries between different art forms, with a keen interest in theatre and visual arts and the ways these can be interwoven.
Besides developing her voice as an author, she has held various roles within different disciplines, including assistant director, screenwriter, and positions in the art department. After completing several distinctive short films during her studies, her most recent project is Medusa is Not Dead, She Is Many, a video installation and a feminist exploration of the myth of Medusa.
Filmography
The Trees Hold Great Sorrow
Medusa is not dead, she is many
Nova Alma
THE FIRST ATTEMPT - The Primordial Darkness of the Mother’s Lap
TOUCHPOINT
Melicious
Contact
Email
Vimeo
Instagram ‘The Trees Hold Great Sorrow’
30-year old Alula has retreated to a remote cabin in the woods, seeking to get away from a traumatic event that continues to haunt her. In the film, two disparate worlds are interwoven: on the one hand, the genuine reality of the cabin, and on the other hand, a dark, abstract limbo, which is a manifestation of Alula’s trauma.
Together with her partner, Orpheo, Alula attempts to come to grips with reality, but her trauma world continues to expand and interject. The supposedly safe cabin turns into an arena of internal strife. Reality and fantasy blend together as Alula relives her trauma.
Written & Directed: Carice van Heusden
Producer: Geoffrey Detant & Carice van Heusden
DOP: Lucas Vandersmissen
Sound Design: Theo Meewis
Editing: Camilla Petralia
2023/ 2024
‘Medusa is not dead, she is many’
‘Medusa is not dead, she is many’ is a three-channel video installation that reimagines the myth of Medusa as a living, fluid metaphor for misogyny and the gaze. The work challenges the long-standing association of Medusa with monstrosity and punishment. Instead, it reclaims her as a figure of resistance and multiplicity, an emblem for those whose voices and visions have been historically silenced. In contemporary times, her story takes on new meaning as an indictment of sexual violence, institutional passivity and the ancient character of misogyny that finds its new revival within far-right ideologies.
Conceived and directed by Carice van Heusden, nine FINTA individuals were invited into a collective exploration of the Medusa myth through feminist thought, lived experience, and artistic practice. Together, they reflect on how visions has been shaped by patriarchal histories, and how the act of seeing can be transformed into a gesture of resistance. Through intimate collaboration, the installation invites viewers into a shared act of shifting the gaze.
‘Medusa is not dead, she is many’ unfolds across three screens in a series of visual conversation. Rather than offering a single retelling, the installation foregrounds process, inviting the spectator into a radical practice of rewriting, remembering, and re-seeing
Written & Directed by: Carice van Heusden
1AD: Astrid De Ketelaere
DOP: Ursula van Impen
Sound Design: Haroen Dierix & Lyth Lochoshvili
Editing: Foebe Hempen & Sterre De Wit
2025
‘Nova Alma’
Nova Alma is an experimental interpretation of the rebirth process based on near-death experiences, the Tibetan Book of the Dead, and the divergent views surrounding death in non-Western cultures.
"I have memories that belong to someone else," Nova’s childlike voice speaks at the beginning of the film. We see a body die on a cellular level, while Alma, a young woman, is forced to say goodbye to her loved ones. Passing the threshold of death, Alma enters a Kafkaesque in-between world — a vacuum where time and space are meaningless concepts. In this in-between state, guided by an absent presence, Alma begins her journey toward reincarnation.
Written & Directed by: Carice van Heusden
Producer: Astrid De Ketelaere
DOP: Femke Hardy
Sound Design: Haroen Dierix
Editing: Camilla Petralia
2025
‘THE FIRST ATTEMPT - The Primordial Darkness of the Mother’s Lap’
‘Even the best attempts at explanation are only more or less successful translations into another metaphorical language’ - Carl Jung.
An experimental documentary that makes an attempt to gain insights into the personal subconscious part of the shadow, following Jung's theory. Noa's voice leads us through a dense, introspective journey through her subconscious and questions the role of the mother tyre.
Concept & Directed: Carice van Heusden
Camera: Carice van Heusden
Cinematographer: Alexander Schillewaert
2024
TOUCHPOINT
In a dystopian future, where society has become completely alienated from each other and physical contact has been forbidden, a young man, Noah, struggles with his growing desire for intimacy. Isolated in a world where people no longer touch each other, Noah discovers the existence of a secret “touch therapy,” which quietly helps people overcome their fear of physical contact.
This scene not only explores the ever-increasing isolation of humans in an increasingly polarized society but also touches on the taboo surrounding sex work. The film emphasizes the essential human need for touch and physical contact in a time of growing individualism.
Scenario: Flo Demeyer & Carice van Heusden
Directed by: Carice van Heusden
DOP: Glenn Wolfs
Chef Sound: Lyth Lochoshvili
Editing: Paco Juchtmans
2023
‘Melicious’
Melicious is an honest portrait of Mel, a self-employed sex worker who practices her trade with pride and professionalism. Since several years, Mel has been self-employed: she runs her own business, provides sex education to young people and also mentors new sex workers within the profession. The documentary sheds new light on the oldest profession still surrounded by stigma and prejudice. Mel's radical honesty creates an intimate portrait that contributes to the humanisation and de-stigmatisation of sex work.
Directed by: Carice van Heusden
DOP: Joost Cauberg
Sound: Egon Jacquemyn
Editing: Carice van Heusden 2022