Julie Keeps Quiet

NSW Premiere

“A tense, absorbing movie of silences and absences…This is a gripping study in dysfunction and repression.” – The Guardian

Co-produced by the Dardenne brothers and premiering to acclaim at Cannes Critics’ Week, Belgian director Leonardo Van Dijl’s debut feature is a tense, haunting character study set at an exclusive Belgian tennis academy that forces us to volley with the truth and read between the lines.

When demanding head coach Jeremy is suspended amidst misconduct allegations, all eyes turn to star pupil Julie, who he has been training in private, away from her parents and the other pupils. Rather than cooperate with the authorities and those around her, this tenacious and promising young athlete chooses to remain silent, processing the upheaval surrounding her on her own terms.

Van Dijl’s sparing and impactful direction gives us, and Julie, the space to draw our own conclusions in quiet moments between intense, impressively staged training sessions and confrontations between Julie and those around her seeking more information. But it is real-life tennis player Tessa Van den Broeck, in her first acting role, who steals the show, holding Julie’s stoicism and vulnerability in her every move.

Festivals & Awards

Winner of the Cannes Critics Week SACD Award
Academy Awards – Belgium's submission for the Best International Feature Film
Nominated for the Bright Horizons Award of the Melbourne International Film Festival 2024