Elsbeth Fraanje (*1979) is a creative documentary director and researcher. Her films are screened and awarded at international filmfestivals such as IDFA, HotDocs, CPH:Dox, Thessaloniki, Slamdance, Krakow, DocAviv, DMZdocs. SEXUAL HEALING (2022) won numerous awards, like the Hotdocs Audience Award. HIGHWAY CONFESSIONS (2017) won the Dutch Academy Award and in 2025 Elsbeth Fraanje was honoree of Aswan International Women Film Festival in Egypt. She also works as a curator of cultural impact programmes, advisor and filmmaker coach. She studied French Literature and Theatre Studies at the UvA, Documentary Directing at the Audio Visual Media training of the HKU (cum laude) and is an alumnus of the Idfa Kids&Docs Workshop, IDFA Academy and Les Nuits en Or of the Academie des César. Jury at Budapest International Film Festival, Rotterdam Arab Film Festival.
Film director
Country of origin
Netherlands
Festivals
Current issues
At the 57th film festival Visions du Réel in Nyon the Interreligious Jury has awarded its Prize to the documentary "Dentro" by Elsa Amiel.
Jacqueline Jansen’s ‘Sechswochenamt’ won the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the achtung berlin 2026 film festival. The jury awarded a Special Mention to Katrin Sikora’s documentary ‘Schwarze Häuser’.
Events
16.02.2025
Haus der EKD, Charlottenstraße 53/54, 10117 Berlin