Edith Kiel, Jan Vanderheyden and the Flemish popular cinema

Jan Vanderheyden and Edith Kiel make their first feature film in 1934. De Witte (Whitey), based on the popular picaresque novel by Ernest Claes, will remain the biggest success in Flemish cinema for decades. Their second film, the romantic operetta Alleen voor U (Only for You, 1935) is made with the same technical skills and visual flair, but is considered too exotic by film critics. The couple then changes strategy: they focus on cheaply produced, popular films set in Antwerp, full of banter, marital disputes and music. Schipperskwartier (The Sailors Quarter, 1953) is their most important post-war success.

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