Boris Gerrets(1948-2020)

Boris Gerrets is a film director, writer and editor. He was born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands into a Bulgarian-German family. He had a cosmopolitan upbringing having spent his childhood in The Netherlands, Spain, Sierra Leone and Germany. With a keen curiosity across the spectrum of the arts, he first studied architecture at RWTH Aachen University, Germany before switching to art history at University of Bonn, Germany and ultimately obtaining a Masters in Fine Arts at the Düsseldorf Art Academy (1976). After working in the visual arts, dance and theatre in the 80s and 90s, exhibiting and touring his work across Europe, he entered the film world acquiring international recognition for his film, People I Could Have Been and Maybe Am (2010), which won twelve awards. Filmed entirely on a mobile phone, People I Could Have Been and Maybe Am (2010) was celebrated by festival juries for creating an intimate portrait of modern day urban life with such humanity. Even after the festival season ended, the film left a lasting mark on the documentary filmmaking landscape and a faithful fan base. Gerrets' following film, Shado'man (2013) which took place at night on the rough streets of Freetown, Sierra Leone, garnered critically praise for its boldness and for the gripping way in which he brought the lives of his characters to light. The film's cinematography, which was also done by Gerrets, was written about as reminiscent of the works of painters such as Goya, Caravaggio and Rembrandt. In 2013, Gerrets received the Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds for his innovative take on the documentary genre and in 2014 he became the Laureate of the Aster Award for his contribution to film art.