The life and strange surprising adventures of Robinson Crusoe who lived for twenty and eight years all alone on an inhabited island and said it was his

Fiction, 75 minutes

This film addresses the larger cultural myth that has grown from the premise of Daniel Defoe’s propaganda piece Robinson Crusoe: a white man ‘civilising’ indigenous inhabitants of an island, and claiming the territory as his own property. In a time today when the call to decolonise the artworld and its associated institutions has never been more urgent, Deboosere’s cinematic intervention resonates with a large body of work seeking to destabilise and replace the ideology of imperialism. The result is a singular, subversive film, satirical and surprisingly charming at the same time, which makes sure to pay just as much attention to animals and the natural world as to the follies of human-constructed ‘anthropocene’ history. (adapted from Adrian Martin’s text for IFFR)

“A joyously idiosyncratic reinvention that stands out among IFFR’s less-established filmmakers.”
Beatrice Loayza – Artforum

“Good-natured energy, weird jokes and a brisk deprogramming of its source material.”
Vadim Rizov – Filmmaker Magazine

Written, directed & edited
Produced by Untitled Production & Hilife Cinematography
Supported by the Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF)
World premiere at International Film Festival Rotterdam 2023
Sales agent Film Republic