The Golden Calf ( nl, Gouden Kalf) is the award of the

Netherlands Film Festival The Netherlands Film Festival ( nl, Nederlands Film Festival) is an annual film festival, held in September and October of each year in the city of Utrecht. During the ten-day festival, Dutch film productions and co-productions are exhibited. Be ...

, which is held annually in

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...

. The award has been presented since 1981, originally in six categories:

Best Actor Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to the ...

Best Actress Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress aw ...

Best Feature Film Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporation, ...

, Best Short Film, Culture Prize and Honourable mention. In 2004, there were 16 award categories, mainly because in 2003 the categories Best Photography, Best Montage,

Best Music Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporation ...

, Best Production Design, Best Sound Design were added. Famous Dutch film makers and actors that have won a ''Golden Calf'' include

Rutger Hauer Rutger Oelsen Hauer (; 23 January 1944 – 19 July 2019) was a Dutch actor. In 1999, he was named by the Dutch public as the Best Dutch Actor of the Century. Hauer's career began in 1969 with the title role in the Dutch television series ' ...

, Louis van Gasteren,

Paul Verhoeven Paul Verhoeven (; born 18 July 1938) is a Dutch director, producer and screenwriter, active in the Netherlands, France and the United States. His blending of graphic violence and sexual content with social satire is a trademark of both his dram ...

Eddy Terstall Eddie or Eddy may refer to: Science and technology *Eddy (fluid dynamics), the swirling of a fluid and the reverse current created when the fluid flows past an obstacle *Eddie (text editor), a text editor originally for BeOS and now ported to Linu ...

Carice van Houten Carice Anouk van Houten () is a Dutch actress and singer (born 5 September 1976 in Leiderdorp). Her first leading role in the television film ''Suzy Q'' (1999) won her the Golden Calf for Best Acting in a Television Drama; two years later, s ...

Felix de Rooy Felix de Rooy (born 3 November 1952) is an Afro-Curaçaoan poet, writer, dramatist, filmmaker, director, artist and curator. In 1979, de Rooy was award the Cola Debrot Prize, the highest cultural award in the former Netherlands Antilles. In 1990 ...

Fons Rademakers Alphonse Marie "Fons" Rademakers (5 September 1920 – 22 February 2007) was a Dutch actor, film director, film producer and screenwriter. His 1960 film '' Makkers Staakt uw Wild Geraas'' was entered into the 11th Berlin International Film Festi ...

Martin Koolhoven Martinus Wouter "Martin" Koolhoven (born 25 April 1969) is a Dutch film director and screenwriter. Internationally he is most known for '' Schnitzel Paradise'' (2005), ''Winter in Wartime'' (2008) and '' Brimstone'' (2016), which was his first f ...

Alex van Warmerdam Alex van Warmerdam (born 14 August 1952) is a Dutch screenwriter, film director, and actor. He is also a painter. Life and career Van Warmerdam was born in Haarlem, a city in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. He was cofounder of ...

Fedja van Huêt Fedja van Huêt (born 21 June 1973, in The Hague) is a Dutch stage and film actor. Van Huêt received his professional training at the Maastricht Academy of Dramatic Arts. He was in the ensemble of the theater companies RO Theater and Theaterco ...

, Jean van de Velde,

Pim de la Parra Pim de la Parra (born 5 January 1940) is a Surinamese- Dutch film director. Between 1967 and 1976, he directed films under the independent production company Scorpio Films with Dutch film director Wim Verstappen, who manages all of its achievem ...

Dick Maas Dirk Herman Willem Maas (Dick) (born 15 April 1951) is a Dutch film director, screenwriter, film producer and film composer. Maas achieved fame after the success of his music videos for the Dutch band Golden Earring, including " Twilight Zone" an ...

Marleen Gorris Marleen Gorris (born 9 December 1948) is a Dutch writer and director. Gorris is known as an outspoken feminist and supporter of gay and lesbian issues which is reflected in much of her work. Her film, '' Antonia's Line,'' won an Oscar for Best ...

Ian Kerkhof Aryan Kaganof (born 1964 as Ian Kerkhof) is a South African film maker, novelist, poet and fine artist. In 1999 he changed his name to Aryan Kaganof. Partial filmography * 1992: '' Kyodai Makes the Big Time'' (91min, Netherlands), drama featur ...

Jeroen Krabbé Jeroen Aart Krabbé (; born 5 December 1944) is a Dutch actor and film director with a successful career in both Dutch and English-language films. He is best known to international audiences for his leading roles in the Paul Verhoeven films ''So ...

Monic Hendrickx Monic Hendrickx (born 3 December 1966 in Sint Anthonis) is a Dutch actress. She has won several awards during her career including four Golden Calf awards for Best Actress at the Nederlands Film Festival, the Jury Award at the 2001 Newport Beach ...

Rijk de Gooyer Rijk de Gooyer (17 December 1925 – 2 November 2011) was a Dutch Golden Calf-winning actor, writer, comedian and singer. From the 1950s until the early 1970s, he became well known in The Netherlands as part of a comic duo with John Kraaijkamp ...

and

Marwan Kenzari Marwan Kenzari ( ar, مروان كنزاري; born 16 January 1983) is a Dutch actor born in The Hague, Netherlands. Starting his career in 2008, he first came to prominence for his role in the 2013 film ''Wolf'', which earned him a Golden Calf a ...

Name and meaning

The name refers to an animal as is common in names of European film awards, such as the

Golden Bear The Golden Bear (german: Goldener Bär) is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival. The bear is the heraldic animal of Berlin, featured on both the coat of arms and flag of Berlin. History The win ...

of the

Berlin Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the fest ...

and the

Golden Lion The Golden Lion ( it, Leone d'oro) is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is now regarded as one of the film industry's most prestigious and distinguis ...

of the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...

, and

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...

is one of the most common types of livestock in the Netherlands.(translation a

The name of the award also refers to the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

reference, where a golden statue of a calf was made by

Aaron According to Abrahamic religions, Aaron ''′aharon'', ar, هارون, Hārūn, Greek (Septuagint): Ἀαρών; often called Aaron the priest ()., group="note" ( or ; ''’Ahărōn'') was a prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of ...

, which was later destroyed by

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu ( Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pr ...

because

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

prohibits worshipping anything other than the One, True God. Jury member in 2002

says the Dutch

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John C ...

culture is more relativizing than proud: "This is why the Golden Calf is such a good prize, because of the wink that is included. Other countries have golden lions and golden bears. We have a golden calf and after all it is sinful to worship it." In 1995

threw his Golden Calf statuette on the street in the reality TV series ''

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choic ...

'' (the Dutch version of ''

Taxicab Confessions ''Taxicab Confessions'' is a television series of hidden camera documentaries that aired on HBO from 1995 through 2006. When passengers enter the cab, they are recorded with several small cameras hidden in the taxi. The producer prompts passeng ...

''), when he was picked up by a

taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choic ...

after a dissatisfying closing ceremony at the

. In 1999 he let Maarten Spanjer, the host of ''Taxi'', throw his Golden Calf for ''

Scratches in the Table ''Scratches in the Table'' () is a 1998 Dutch film directed by Ineke Houtman. It was the Netherlands' official Best Foreign Language Film submission at the 72nd Academy Awards, but did not manage to receive a nomination.* Cast * Madelief Verelst ...

'' out of the window.

Award categories

Film awards

* Culture Prize * Best long feature film * Best Director * Best Script * Best Leading Role * Best Supporting Role * Best Short film * Best long documentary * Best Short Documentary * Best Cinematography * Best Editing *

* Best Production Design * Best Sound Design * Best Photography

TV awards

* Best Actor in a Television Drama * Best Actress in a Television Drama * Best Acting in a Television Drama * Best Television Drama

Interactive award

The Golden Calf Award for Best Interactive is a category presented since 2015. It is awarded to forms of interactive storytelling outside standard film and television like, for instance, VR films,

video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedbac ...

, website design, webseries and

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social me ...

projects. The winners were: * 2015:
Refugee Republic
' -

De Volkskrant ''de Volkskrant'' (; ''The People's Paper'') is a Dutch daily morning newspaper. Founded in 1919, it has a nationwide circulation of about 250,000. Formerly a leading centre-left Catholic broadsheet, ''de Volkskrant'' today is a medium-sized c ...

/ Submarinechannel * 2016:
The Modular Body
' -

Floris Kaayk Floris Kaayk (born 1982) is a Dutch digital artist. He grew up in Tiel as the son of artist couple Coen and Guusje Kaayk. Kaayk graduated summa cum laude from the animation department of AKV St. Joost academy of Art and Design in Breda, and gain ...

* 2017: ''

Horizon Zero Dawn ''Horizon Zero Dawn'' is a 2017 action role-playing game developed by Guerrilla Games and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The plot follows Aloy, a young hunter in a world overrun by machines, who sets out to uncover her past. The ...

'' -

Guerrilla Games Guerrilla B.V. (trade name: Guerrilla Games) is a Dutch First-party developer, first-party video game developer based in Amsterdam and part of PlayStation Studios. The company was founded as Lost Boys Games in January 2000 through the merger of ...

* 2018:
#DEARCATCALLERS
' -

Noa Jansma Noa or NOA may refer to: People * Noa (name) * Noa (Achinoam Nini), Israeli singer * Noa, one of the five daughters of Zelophehad (her name is spelled "Noah" in some Bible translations) Fictional * Noa (dog), a dog in ''Inubaka: Crazy for ...

* 2019: '' Die Fernweh Oper'' - Daniel Ernst/ The Shoebox Dioramahttp://theshoeboxdiorama.com/ * 2020: Nerd Funk -

Ali Eslami Ali Eslami is a business strategist and renowned high-stakes poker primarily focused on limit mix-games. Eslami is one of the first two people to win the Man-Machine Poker Competition. He represented the United States on the U.S. Poker team in t ...

and Mamali Shafahi

Special awards

* Special Jury Prize * Public Prize * Development Prize * Awards only awarded once or twice are: ** Best Film of the Century (1999) -

Rob Houwer Robert Piet Houwer (born 13 December 1937) is a Dutch film producer. He studied at the University of Television and Film Munich, Germany. In 1964 he directed the short film Anmeldung (Declaration) which was awarded a Silver Bear at the Berlin Fil ...

for '' Turks Fruit'' ** Control Award (1994, 1992) - Cor Koppies (1994), J.Th. van Taalingen (1992) ** Best Commercial (1990, 1991) - Todd Masters for '' Woonruimte gevraagd'' (1991),

Trevor Wrenn Trevor ( Trefor in the Welsh language) is a common given name or surname of Welsh origin. It is an habitational name, deriving from the Welsh ''tre(f)'', meaning "homestead", or "settlement" and ''fawr'', meaning "large, big". The Cornish langu ...

voor '' Hamka's'' (1990) ** Best European Film (1994, 1995) -

Kazimierz Kutz Kazimierz Julian Kutz (16 February 1929 – 18 December 2018) was a Polish film director, author, journalist and politician, one of the representatives of the Polish Film School and a deputy speaker of the Senate of Poland. Biography Kazimierz ...

for '' Turned Back'' (1995), Jonathan Cavendisch &

Tim Palmer Timothy J. Palmer (born 4 October 1962, in North Shields) is an English record producer, audio engineer, guitarist and songwriter of rock and alternative music. He mixed Pearl Jam's debut album ''Ten'' (1991) and tracks on U2's album ''All Tha ...

for '' Into the West'' (1994)

Retired awards

* Occupation Award * Honourable Mention

References

External links

*
Netherlands Film Festival
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

{{Film awards in the Netherlands Dutch film awards Awards established in 1981 Golden calf