Pieter-Rim de Kroon is a highly acclaimed director and producer of distinguished feature documentaries, educational films, and corporate image films for premium brands. Over the course of his career, his films have received more than 150 international awards, including numerous Grand Prix honors at major film festivals.
Born in 1955, Pieter-Rim de Kroon graduated from the Dutch Film and Television Academy in Amsterdam in 1981 as a documentary film director and cinematographer. He spent five years working as a cameraman and director for the Polygoon Cinema Newsreel, gaining extensive international experience and producing approximately 250 short 35mm films. During this period, he worked on productions for the Dutch Government Information Service, created documentaries on development cooperation in East Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean, and attended seminars at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Hollywood as well as the British Kinematograph, Sound and Television Society.
In 1986, de Kroon joined the renowned Dutch production company Toonder Studios, where he directed international commercials, documentaries, corporate films, and short films. From 1992 to 1995, he served as Creative Director of the live-action film department. In 1995, he founded his own production company, De Kroon, Wissenraet & Associates, focusing on prestigious corporate films, environmental subjects, branded films for premium spirits brands, and cultural documentaries, most of them shot on 35mm film. The company maintained an extensive international production output.
In 2010, he co-founded Windmill Film, and in 2015 he established Dutch Light Films, returning to his core passion: creating and directing exceptional film projects.
Over the years, de Kroon has mastered a wide range of complex filming techniques. Even his critics acknowledge the strong visual impact of his work. His films are distinguished by their cinematic craftsmanship, attention to detail, art direction, camera choreography, and innovative use of sound and music. More recently, he has been involved in the restoration and long-term preservation of historical film footage.
His film Dancin’ The Camera was selected for the Cinedans Festival in 2016. His documentary The Iconic Cocktail explores the myths and realities surrounding the Martini cocktail.
His feature documentary The Nolet Chronicles, chronicling the past, present, and future of the Netherlands’ oldest family-owned enterprise, is set to premiere in 2091. Yes, 2091. Conceived as an extraordinary long-term film project, it explores the enduring power of legacy, stewardship, and the vision required to build a company that thrives across centuries.
De Kroon’s feature documentary Silence of the Tides premiered at IDFA in 2020, where it received a Special Jury Mention and was selected for the IDFA Extended program. The film won Best Feature Film at the Naturale Nature & Environment Festival in Wiesbaden, Germany, and de Kroon received the Best Director Award at GZDOC in Guangzhou, China.
Silence of the Tides is a cinematic exploration of the Wadden Sea, breathing in rhythm with its tides while examining the fragile relationship between humanity and nature. The film was released theatrically in the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium, and screened at dozens of international film festivals worldwide.
Currently, Pieter-Rim is developing Cloud Busting, a cinematic tribute to clouds. Intended for the big screen, the film explores the relationship between clouds and climate change.
Through his films, de Kroon continually seeks to elevate the art of observation beyond mere documentation, transforming it into a profound cinematic experience.
Throughout his career, de Kroon has served on numerous film festival juries and has conducted workshops, masterclasses, and lectures at international film festivals, universities, and arts institutions around the world.
R&D for a CO₂-minimized, environmentally responsible documentary that explores clouds as both a chaotic scientific reality and a poetic force. The film treats the cloud not merely as weather, but as a living symbol of change, uncertainty, imagination, and planetary interconnectedness.
Research and development for an 8×10 large-format analogue photography project as a ‘ZEN’ counterpoint to AI.
Twenty-five years after we first placed the camera on the dike between Marken and Monnickendam to observe the famous Dutch Light, the restored 4K version of the feature documentary Dutch Light (Hollands Licht) has been included as an Eye Classic in the collection of the Eye Filmmuseum. Among an international series of awards, the film was honored with a Golden Calf, the highest award in Dutch cinema >>
Served as a Jury Member for the prestigious Golden Panda Awards in Chengdu, China, contributing to the evaluation and recognition of outstanding
international film and television productions.
Creation of a 3 screen immersive audio-visual experience at the World Heritage Centre Wadden Sea in Lauwersoog, The Netherlands.
– Jury member GZDOC Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival,
– Masterclass at GZDOC
– Monitoring ditch infiltration for assessing the effectiveness of water infiltration which helps to combat drought, land subsidence, and greenhouse gas emissions
– Night Butterfly monitoring activities
– Monitoring and protection activities for meadow birds in Waterland.
– Jury member Wildlife Film Festival Rotterdam
– Silence of the Tides was the opening film at the Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival (GZDOC) in China. It won the prestigious Best Documentary Director Award and secured the second place in the main category. >>
– Cinema release in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany for Silence of the Tides.
Commissioned film ‘ Living Wood’ inspired by the Sectio Divina (Golden Ratio) for Vonder, exclusive creators of the finest wooden furniture.>>
– Release of the coffee-table book Silence of the Tides published by TerraLannoo.
– Special Mention IDFA International Documentary Festival Amsterdam for Silence of the Tides. Start of a series of international festivals and awards.>>
– Jury member Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards
16 months of shooting for Silence of the Tides in The Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. >>
research & development for Silence of the Tides, a cinematic film that inhales and exhales along with the tides of the Wadden Sea as it explores the fragile relationship between man and nature.>>
Premiere documentary ‘Waiting for the Eruption’, 36 VIEWS at the CAMERA JAPAN FESTIVAL. A radical observation on the relation between man & nature. >>
Feature length documentary about the past, present and future of the family owned Nolet Distillery In Schiedam, Holland. The film is transferred to 35mm analogue motion picture negative and placed in a controlled freezing system for extreme long-term conservation. In the year 2091 the film will be de-frozen and released for an audience on behalf of the 400 year anniversary of the Nolet Distillery. >>
Premiere Netherlands Film Festival A DAY IN A LIFE, documentary shot on board of the ‘Hi No De’ in the Suruga bay Japan, selected for the L’OR GOLDEN CALF competition. >>
Research & development. Documentary about American legend, traveler and photographer Burton Holmes. >>
A love story about a Tap dancer, a Piano player and a 1922 hand cranked motion picture camera. Filmed on 35mm motion picture film.
Released at Cinedance 2015, Netherlands Film Festival and NTR. >>
Co-producer (Dutch Light Films) of this wonderful stop-motion Golden Calf winner, Netherlands Film Festival.
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Shooting in London, New York, San Franciso, Las Vegas, Bodega Bay CA and Laguna Niguel for The Nolet Chronicles. A ‘secret’ project.
Another trip to Japan for 36 Views.
Research & development for 36 Views, traveling to Japan for, ‘lost in translation’, location scouting, mapping Mount Fuji highest volcano, symbol of ‘eternal beauty’, in Japan. >>
‘Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.’ F.I.S.H.I.N.G is dedicated to what may well be the most remarkable national sport in the Netherlands. Is fishing a passion, perhaps an instinct? A subconscious longing for unpredictable nature? Two parallel worlds, carefully separated by the water surface. F.I.S.H.I.N.G is a cinematic quest for the primitive fishing instinct in mankind. Teledoc. 90 min. Avro Television. Cinema release. Netherlands Film Festival. >>
Short film about my 35mm 1922 Parvo Debrie hand cranked movie camera. Netherlands Film Festival. >>
After 30 years non stop shooting, editing, writing and directing films. Time for a sabbatical. Himalaya India, Suriname & USA. Back to basics.
short drama with female lead Thekla Reuten receives the Festival Grand Prix as well as a Black Dolphin for best director at Cannes Film & TV Awards amoon another 15 international prices.
Co-founded Windmill Film, production company for documentaries for Cinema & Television. >>
Camera work and co-producer. Documentary about the way Dutch scientists mapped the Milky Way solar system. Holland Doc. Science Film Festival, Portugese TV.
Appeared in a short film about my vision on the historical documentary RAIN by Joris Ivens and how it was made, in a short film by on behalf of the Dutch Film Canon
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A short ‘international’ film based on an intriguing and mysterious story. Short dramatised scenes and ‘flashbacks’ suggest in an associative, convincing manner that Nolet’s Gin is the most special, unique gin in the world. The progression of time plays a critically important role in the film. The time that is required to achieve sublime quality. The time that creates memories, talent, and experiences. The time that develops, creates and makes history. >>
Short drama about a magical old shop that sells miniature windmills. When the owner goes home at night strange things happen. >>
Corporate film for Akzo Nobel shot in China, Switserland and The Caribean.
Best of Festival, The Grand Prix at Le Creusot International Festival – France
Corporate film for Organon Pharmaceutical.
Shot in a 3D CGI virtual world
Feature documentary about the special quality of the light in Holland which was discovered and celebrated in art. Without it, the work of artists like Johannes Vermeer, Philips Koninck and Jan van Goyen would not have been the same. Nor would that of more recent artists such as Mondriaan or The Hague School, or even painters working today. According to the German artist this famous light does not exist anymore because of the land reclamation in The Netherlands.
AVRO Television Release worldwide in 16 countries. Dutch Light run for 58 weeks non stop in Dutch cinemas
Golden Calf for Best long documentary. Netherlands Film Festival
Best Director of Photography ‘Festival Di Palazzo Venetië Italy
European Film Festival Brussels – Belgium Audience Award’
Dutch Academy Award, best broadcasted documentary in the category ‘Art & Culture’ >>
Serie of short educational video’s and recipes for the USA market about the art of cocktail mixology presented by mixologist Seth Martin and wine author Anthony Dias-Blue.
Another film for the best Vodka west of the Wolga.
Short educational film about watermanagement.
SAM Festival Netherlands Gold Award
Short drama about 10 generations of the Nolet Family creators of a unique hand made vodka. Winner of many, many international awards.
Film about the soil we live on and from.
Promotional documentary about The Netherlands
Released in 21 countries on television 220 miljon viewers worldwide
Received 18 awards on International Film Festivals
Road movie trough the Dutch Delta to commemorate 200 years Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management. Tros televison.
Short movie for Dutch distributor Central Bookhouse, shown at the Leipsiger Buchmesse
SAM Festival The Netherlands, First Price
VAP Producers Award
Documentary Red Cross
RTL4 Televison
ICC Festival Biarritz, Best of Festival
Industrial documentary about environmental technology & soil management.
Documentary Rabo bank
Corporate film ING Bank
Energy awareness program Novem Vrom
VAP producers award
ABN AMRO bank. Corporate film.
Soap serie for Vara television about the future of Europe
Corporate movie for Agfa Gevaert world wide.
Shot in Japan, USA, France, Germany, Brasil, Belgium and Morocco
Shitload of awards and legendary shooting adventures.
Branded film for IBM about people and communication.
A composer, a deaf girl, two dancers and a professor in the theology in Egypt.
All story lines come together in a dramatic climax
Grand Prix, European Festival of Corporate Image Biarritz France
Corporate film for SKF World leader in rolling bearings.
Documentary Ministry of Agriculture The Netherlands.
First film about the creation of nowadays world famous Ketel One Vodka.
150 years Dutch Rail Roads
Ton of international awards. Veronica TV
Grand Prix European Festival of Corporate Image Biarritz France
Ministry of Housing & Environment TNO Research
Tv Spain, Belgium, Germany China
Magna Cum Laude Excellent photography
International Scientific Film Festival, Shanghai China
TNO Research Ministry of Education NOTA
Starting as cameraman and director and later, creative director, at the famous film production company Toonder Studio’s shooting my environmental film DON’T PLAY THE OSTRICH and receiving my first award in New York.
Shooting a series in Jamaica. Ganja, Red Stripe Beer and Jerk Chicken.
Legendary smokey concert of the original Skattalites in Zinc Fence, Kingstown.
Shooting about 50 items a year on 35mm film with my own Arriflex 2C camera for Polygoon Cinema Newsreel. Among them a mini-doc of Dutch Singer Fay Lovski in gorgeous Agfa Gevaert Black & White.
Finished Film academy and traveling around the world with former Queen Beatrix as staring cameraman.
Documentary USA (NBC) China, France
Camera & Documentary
Served my country at God’s own corps, Korps Commando Troepen Netherlands.
