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Losing Track

14 minutes     Art Film / Family / Drama / Foreign / IndieFlix Official Selections

The nightmare begins when 'workaholic' Frank loses track of his daughter during a train ride to his ex wife.

Intended Audience: Family

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Charlotte (9) and Frank, her father arrive at the railway station. Frank is to return Charlotte to her mother, his ex-wife. When a train arrives, Frank and Charlotte hesitantly board it. Frank is ill at ease due to the chaos at the poetry festival he organizes and he would prefer to avoid confronting his ex-wife because he will be late. Frank goes to the men’s room in order to get some water to help swallow his tranquilizing tablets. Upon his return, Charlotte has vacated her seat. Frank traverses the train and inquires with several passengers whether they’ve seen his little daughter. None of them remembers having laid eyes on her and Frank starts to distrust everyone but himself. The people from the poetry festival keep bothering him and in the mean time the train is driving progressively faster. On top of that, it seems to be riding in circles. He thinks he sees Charlotte again and runs after her. A child’s chocolate hand imprint on the train door makes him conclude that his daughter has fallen off the train. Grief stricken, he uses his cell phone to call his ex-wife Ellen. Ellen doesn’t understand what’s wrong. Charlotte is with her, waiting for her dad to pick her up. Then we find ourselves looking at the miniature train she's playing with. It’s riding around in circles. We recognize the little railway station and details of the scenery. Charlotte looks up at her mum, smiling in a somewhat sinister way..

Meet the Filmmaker

Director's Statement:

The nice thing about the surrealist genre is that there remains so much to talk about after the film’s final credits. Many things can be explained in more than one way. Which doesn’t necessarily mean that the filmmaker couldn’t decide on what story to tell, but rather that he chooses to play with the notion that things aren’t always what you think they are. What is going on and who has got something to do with it? Often, the audience is just as much in the dark as the main character(s). As is tradition in this genre, in Losing Track’s final minute imagination and reality seem to be completely intertwined. Frank’s train ride has become a nightmare and he uses his cell phone to try and make contact with the sane world. Ellen picking up the phone is real, so Frank can’t be dreaming... Ellen opens the blinds and all-of-a-sudden night changes into day in Frank’s world... Charlotte hasn’t gone out, but has been waiting for hours for her dad to come and pick her up. So everything was merely a dream? That’d be too simple.

  • Directed by: Jacco Groen
  • Written by: Jacco Groen
  • Produced by: Jos van der Pal
  • Run Time: 14 minutes
  • Release Date: 2006
  • Country: Netherlands
  • Intended Audience: family
Directed by Jacco Groen

Written by Jacco Groen

Produced by Jos van der Pal

Cast
Jan Sepers: train conductor
Aat de Waay: old lady
Lisette Livingstone: Charlotte
Tine Joustra: mother
George van Houts: Frank
Fanny Croone: girl in wheel chair
Crew
Dennis van Schie, CoArt CGI: title designer
Arjen Weijers, CoArt CGI: special effects creator
Bart Jilesen: sound mixer
Niel Duran: runner
Sanne Mulder, Rogier van der Voort: production assistants
Cortine Overwater, Sergio Blankendal: set dressers
Elske: additional casting
Edith Hazelebach: casting director
Suzanne Pelgrim: make-up artist
Toos de Vos: costume designer
Ben Zuydwijk: art director
Ferry Rooyakkers, Danny Maas: lighting technicians
Maarten van der Pluijm: gaffer
Peter van Vught: grip
Floris van der Lee: clapper/loader
Nina da Costa: focus puller
Patrick van Weeren: steadycam operator
Arjen Slings, Thomas Rohde: first A.D.
Esther Thedinga: production manager
Danny Weijermans: composer
Boelie Vis, Filmmore: editor
Max Frick, Soundpalette: sound designer
Peterjan van der Burgh: director of photography
Jos van der Pal: producer
Jacco Groen: writer, director
Hanno Groen: model builder
Wikje van Ritbergen: continuity
Elisabeth Hesemans: supervisor to Miss Livingstone
Jonathan Kuijs: video assist
Vincent Sparacino, Marcel Dekker, Rinus de Bart: location managers
De Goederenloods: catering
Marion Vredeling: additional location scouting
Ivanka Bakker: still photographer
Inez de Zwart: props

The works of the Belgian painter Paul Delvaux constitute a major source of inspiration when it comes to the film's imagery. The night and evening skies in his paintings are often of a dark violet, with a bright moon. Women in classical attire in conspicuous locations, quite often railway stations, mindlessly staring. As if they’re waiting. Not engaged in any activity whatsoever. The film's sound may gradually suggest cyclic motion to its audience. A tunnel – the bells of a railway crossing – switching the points – a station – a tunnel and so on. This will become evident during the film’s climax, when the train is in top gear.
Lead actor George van Houts is a successful Dutch comedian.

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