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Seventeen-year-old Ayoub (Ayoub Elasri) has a lot on his plate: his father (Chaib Massaoudi) is a junkie, his mother (Elsie de Brauw) is a lonely divorcé, and his sister (Olivia Lonsdale) is falling in with the wrong crowd. Haunted by his father’s terrible reputation, Ayoub can’t get the attention of Laura (Sigrid ten Napel), the most beautiful girl in the neighborhood. He does, however, gain the attention of Kalpa (Freddy Tratlehner), an eccentric, purple Lamborghini-driving, psychotically violent local criminal. Falling in with Kalpa, Ayoub tries to enlarge his status (and wallet) enough to win Laura over, but soon finds that his new life is far more than he bargained for. Director / writer Sam de Jong stops by for a spirited conversation on his exciting and challenging feature breakout film.

*2015 Berlinale – Honorary Mention: Crystal Bear for Best First Feature

“Although the disaffected youth drama knows no international boundaries, few have felt as fresh and consistently unpredictable as the slyly satirical “Prince” by Dutch filmmaker Sam de Jong.” – Michael Rechtshaffen, LA Times

“Expertly paced and gorgeous to behold, Sam de Jong’s Dutch-language directorial debut sets a stylish coming-of-age story in a bleak Amsterdam housing project.” – Ian S. Port, Village Voice

“The dialogue is stylized, part hip-hop, part American Western, and many compositions are studies in landscapes that are cool and resistant to the figures within.” – Newcity

“It revives hope for a pop-art cinema that’s capable of treating characters like actual human beings rather than pawns on a chess board.“ – Slant Magazine