With his highly personal, grainy women’s portraits, Gerard Petrus Fieret (1924-2009) managed to antagonize the entire late sixties establishment. In his mouse-infested studio he photographed his semi- or wholly undressed models as well as himself, his cat and the many sick pigeons living there with him. His photographic work has a unique quality which today is increasingly recognised by collectors and museums alike. His international breakthrough means prices for his work are rocketing, a development from which Fieret himself didn’t actually reap any benefits. He died in 2009 at the age of 85.
This documentary film was shot during the final two years of his life. The camera shows Gerard Fieret to be alternately lucid and confused, aggressive and suave, stubborn and cooperative, accusing all and sundry and bemoaning his physical decline. Sixties models reminisce about the sometimes bizarre sessions, and photographic experts and art dealers speak about this versatile artist’s singular body of work. At the end of his life a major discovery is made: on the Duindicht country estate near The Hague, in the mole catcher’s cottage next to the trailer which had become his home, negatives which were thought to have been lost are discovered, stuffed into jerry cans.
Photo and Copyright by G.P. Fieret is now available on Vimeo on Demand
Watch on Vimeo on Demand or order the DVD
Director
Frank van den Engel
Frank van den Engel (Rotterdam 1956). He started the independent documentaryfilm productioncompany Zeppers Film. Since then he produced more than 75 films for cinema and television; some of them awarded at prestigious international festivals: Andre Hazes – she believes in me (Joris Ivens Award IDFA 1999), Voices of Bam (Special Mention Tribeca Film Festival), Boris Ryzhy (Silver Wolf IDFA 2008) and 900 Days (Best Dutch Documentary, IDFA 2011).
Nowadays he combines his work as producer with the filmdirecting. His debut Normaal – I always come back was released in cinema in 2002. His second feature Between Heaven and Earth was released in 2007. Photo & Copyright by G.P. Fieret (50′) was nominated for a Golden Calf in 2009 and his latest documentary film The Next Big Thing for NTR’s Uur van de Wolf was broadcast in spring 2014.
Credits
directed by frank van den engel / photography erik van empel / sound recording mark wessner editing riekje ziengs / sound editing tom bijnen / music composed by hans helewaut / producer jorinde soree / commisioning editor nps annemiek van der zanden.
In co-production with NTR. With support from Dutch Cultural Media Fund.