About

We, Harald and Caroline, form a creative duo within the production company Exosphere, bringing a simultaneous male and female perspective to the screen. Our ultimate and audacious goal is to create intelligent blockbusters: to both thoroughly entertain audiences and, almost imperceptibly, make them think about profound personal and societal issues.

We don’t look for the beaten path in the movie world but get our kicks exploring how to do things differently. Better, quirkier, more entrepreneurial, less dependent and with meticulous attention to layered storytelling, lighting, color and music.

We look to the past for inspiration, especially the golden age of Hollywood, but we also excitedly embrace modern technology. As we look to the future, we don’t envision a multitude of films, but rather a few that are made as a “Gesamtkunstwerk” with cast and crew. Ultimately, we want to leave a legacy that is both contemporary and timeless.

Harald Swinkels

Harald Swinkels is a passionate writer-director who has taken a rather unusual path for most filmmakers (see video “Living the Dream”) to do what he has always wanted to do: make touchingly beautiful movies. Although Harald gives his all in everything he does, he lives by the motto “don’t take yourself too seriously”. One of Harald’s other life philosophies is that the purpose of life is to fight maturity and always remain playful. Therefore, Harald is often childlike in his enthusiasm.
He is deeply interested in history and art, film, the human brain and technological developments. He reads a lot, and watches lots of movies and is furthermore blessed with a particularly strong memory.

Together with Caroline, Harald forms a creative duo. Within their working methods, Harald is the one who comes up with the original ideas, and when they write scripts together, who comes up with the initial texts. Caroline is the one who gives immediate criticism and polishes the diamonds in the rough, such as “I don’t feel that” or “that’s not what that character would say”. In addition, she keeps Harald on his toes when it comes to including too many references to favorite movie scenes, and Harald in turn pushes Caroline not to think too small or underestimate herself.

Caroline Bevaart

Unlike Harald, Caroline did not have a young-girl movie dream in her youth. She loves movies, but had no fervent desire to ever become a powerful female filmmaker. She is now an award-winning director for DRAWBACK and partner in production company Exosphere. The path to filmmaking began when she met Harald at the energy company he founded (see video “Living the Dream”), where Caroline worked as marketing & communications manager. When Harald asked Caroline if she might want to co-write the commercials the company wanted to make and produce them – unencumbered by any knowledge in this field – she stepped in.

The greatest talent that Caroline brings to the field of filmmaking is that she judges everything that is written and shot from the underbelly. Far from being hampered by a large ego, she always puts herself at the service of making the film project more palpable. “I don’t feel it” is her most deadly and effective comment on what’s being made, and when she says it, it’s always meaningful. Compared to Harald, Caroline is less concerned with the technical aspects of filmmaking, focusing instead on how the actors convey the intended emotions on the screen.

Simon is a lonely comic strip artist with an unattainable love: Rachel, a woman he sees regularly in the grand cafe where he works on his drawings. Whenever Rachel comes into the cafe, Simon feels an irrepressible urge to put his work aside and secretly sketch portraits of her.

One day, Simon is offered a pencil by a distinguished gentleman in the back of the cafe. Simon discovers that by drawing with this pencil he has the power to change the course of his life. He uses it to win Rachel over, but is genuine love makeable?