MAIN DRAMATIC COMPETITION “MAKING WAY”

TREAT HER LIKE A LADY

2026 / 110 min / color

Sandra (an electrifying performance by Nienke Plas, evoking Almodóvar’s powerful heroines) lives with her two daughters and her partner in an apartment on the outskirts of Amsterdam; she can barely make ends meet. She takes on various jobs, including cleaning the apartments of the wealthy and privileged. She finds out that her boyfriend has been cheating on her and is expecting a baby with another woman, but that’s the least of her worries. Unpaid bills and the threat of getting evicted and having her children taken away from her by a flawed social welfare system hang over Sandra’s head like a dark cloud. Despite all the adversities, Sandra refuses to give up, determined to fight for herself and her daughters, in defiance of capitalism and its terrible social welfare model.

The sophomore feature from Dutch filmmaker Paloma Aguilera Valdebenito pulsates with life, energy and vivid colors. In spite of the difficult subject matter it tackles, the journey of its central character conveys how even in desperate situations it’s possible to find hope and joy.