Young Hearts (2024 film)

Young Hearts
Festival release poster
Directed by	Anthony Schatteman
Written by	Anthony Schatteman
Produced by	Xavier Rombaut Floor Onrust Annabella Nezri
Starring	Lou Goossens Marius De Saeger
Cinematography	Pieter Van Campe
Edited by	Emiel Nuninga
Music by	Ruben De Gheselle
Production companies	Polar Bear Family Affair Films Kwassa Films
Distributed by	Films Boutique Kinepolis Film Distribution
Release dates	17 February 2024 (2024-02-17) (Berlinale) 18 December 2024 (2024-12-18) (Belgium)
Running time	97 minutes
Countries	Belgium Netherlands
Languages	Dutch French

Young Hearts is a 2024 coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Anthony Schatteman in his feature directorial debut. The film tells the story of Elias, a boy who falls in love with his new neighbour, a boy of the same age named Alexander.^[1]

The Belgian-Dutch co-production was selected in the Generation Kplus section at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 17 February and competed for Crystal Bear for the Best Film.^[2]

Elias, a boy from the Belgian countryside, forms a friendship with his new neighbor, Alexander, a confident and headstrong boy from Brussels. As the two grow closer, Alexander reveals that he was in love with a boy and asks Elias if he has experienced true love, a question that lingers in his mind.

For the first time, Elias begins to understand the depth of his feelings as he starts to fall in love with Alexander. However, overwhelmed by fear of judgment and rejection, Elias denies his emotions, distancing himself from his friends, family, and Alexander to hide his truth. Consumed by loneliness and regret, Elias struggles with the weight of his decisions.

A heartfelt conversation with his grandfather, who shares a story of his enduring love for his late wife, inspires Elias to confront his fears. Realizing that love is too precious to let slip away, he gathers the courage to reconcile with Alexander, taking a brave step toward embracing his feelings and the possibility of love.

• Lou Goossens as Elias Montero^[3]
• Marius De Saeger as Alexander
• Geert Van Rampelberg as Luk Montero,^[4] Elias' father
• Emilie De Roo as Nathalie, Elias' mother
• Dirk Van Dijck as Fred, Elias' grandfather
• Saar Rogiers as Valerie, Alexander's friend and Elias' girlfriend/friend
• Jul Goossens as Maxime, Elias' older brother
• Wim Opbrouck as Uncle Tony, Alexander's uncle
• Florence Hebbelynck as Aunt Pia, Alexander's aunt
• Olivier Englebert as Marc, Alexander's father
• LaDiva Live as La Diva, a drag queen in Brussels

Young Hearts is the debut directing feature film for Anthony Schatteman featuring Lou Goossens and Marius De Saeger in the main roles, with Geert Van Rampelberg, Emilie De Roo, and Dirk Van Dyck playing pivotal supporting roles.^[5] The film is produced by Polar Bear, in co-production with the Belgian Kwassa Films and the Dutch Family Affair Films.^[6]

The development of the film began in 2019 and spanned four years. Production of the film was first announced by Anthony Schatteman in a Facebook post on 31 May 2022.^[7] The production team spent six months scouting suitable filming locations. Open casting calls began on 20 September 2022, focusing on filling the main roles with boys aged 11 to 18.^[8] Director Anthony Schatteman, alongside his best friend and the film's Children's Coach, Oliver Roels, reviewed over 1,500 auditions. Marius De Saeger was the first actor cast, as his personality and personal life closely aligned with the character of Alexander. Lou Goossens was later selected for the role of Elias, chosen for his natural connection with De Saeger and the parallels between his personal life and that of the character. Filming commenced in August 2023 and was completed over a span of 28 days.^[9]

The film's narrative draws heavily from Schatteman's own youth and personal experiences. In an interview with the Teddy Award, he described it as the film he "needed or wanted to see" during his adolescence. Schatteman aimed to create a universal coming-of-age story that could resonate with viewers of all ages. He emphasized the film's focus on romance, drawing inspiration from his own life, and its intent to evoke strong emotions. The story centers on themes of identity, self-discovery, and the struggles of growing up.^[10]

The film features a brief scene in which Elias and Alexander are seen joyously playing and swimming together in a forest lake. Alexander removes all his clothes and his buttocks can be clearly seen just before he jumps into the water. Elias jumps into the water as well, still wearing his underwear.^[11] This scene has generated slight controversy.^{[12] [13]}

During an interview with Frank J. Avella for Edge Media Network on 25 March 2025, Schatteman talked about the scene's origin, evolution, symbolism and social impact: "It wasn't easy because I wrote them as 15-year-olds in the script. But then during the casting process, we weren't really looking for a (specific) age. We saw kids between 11-and-18-years-old. We were looking for this innocence. Because I already knew that one of the first pictures I wanted to show were the two kids playing in the water, half naked, because this was real freedom. And the first time I showed the picture to my stepfather, he was like, 'Isn't this too pornographic?' And I was like, the fact that you think like this, maybe something's wrong with you. A lot of people told me, 'don't do it, because America is not going to buy the movie. Skip the scene where they go skinny dipping'. And I was like, no... Alexander is already everything that Elias is not in the beginning. The fact that he goes swimming naked was really to show it's not about sex. It's about being free and not caring about anyone else. And I was like, fuck it, if America doesn't want a movie because there's a naked scene in it then they shouldn't buy it. But, actually, no one said anything about it, because these kids are just a representation of innocence".^[14]

During an interview with Tim Horemans for the Composer Talk podcast on 2 January 2025, the film's composer Ruben De Gheselle said about the scene: "The first time they go swimming it reflects a kind of hesitation, that you let go. It reflects a kind of small intimacy, it's a very beautiful scene. It goes from his (Elias) little point of doubt to 'Yes, I'm going to jump in together with my new friend and to jump in this water and to jump also into the depth'.^[15]

Ruben De Gheselle was hired to score the film. Young Hearts was his feature film debut.^[16] Ruben De Gheselle's original score for Young Hearts was also released by MovieScore Media on 18 December 2024.^[17]

Luk Montero's hit song De Eerste Liefde (First Love) performed by Geert Van Rampelberg was released as a single on 1 October 2024 by CNR Records.^[19]

During an interview with Tim Horemans for the Composer Talk podcast on 2 January 2025, De Gheselle stated: "I had to follow the logic of the film. It's an accesible film, my music had to be accesible without being easy. [...] You have this feeling of this first love that you feel, all the doubts within it but also all the excitement of it, so we didn't make very strong themes".^[20]

Young Hearts had its world premiere on 17 February 2024, as part of the 74th Berlin International Film Festival, in Generation Kplus.^[21][22][23] It was also screened at the 50th Seattle International Film Festival in May 2024^[24] and the 77th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes Écrans Juniors section on 22 May 2024.^[25] It had its Canadian premiere at the Inside Out Film and Video Festival on 28 May 2024 in Centrepiece Gala.^[26]

It also featured in the International Competition of Feature Films in the junior category on 2 June 2024 in the 64th edition of the Zlín Film Festival, also known as the International Film Festival for Children and Youth held in the Czech Republic.^[27] The film competed for Iris Prize Best Feature Award in Iris Prize and was screened on 10 October 2024.^[28]

The film was released in Belgian cinemas on 18 December 2024 by Kinepolis Film Distribution.^[6] The film was released in Dutch cinemas on 19 December 2024.^[29] The film premiered in the United States on 14 March 2025 at the IFC Center in New York.^[30] The film is anticipated to premiere more widely across 2025. On Friday 6 June, United Kingdom distributor Peccadillo Pictures confirmed via the film's official trailer that Young Hearts would release in the UK on Friday 8 August.^[31]

The film was released in Mexican cinemas on 17 July 2025 by Cine Caníbal.^{[32] [33][34]} Lou Goossens and Marius De Saeger stated their satisfaction and amazement on the enormous level of praise Young Hearts achieved with audiences in Mexico describing it as a "surreal" experience due to it being far away from Belgium as well as being a larger city.^[35]

The film was released on Blu-ray and DVD in Germany on 28 March 2025 and 3 July 2025 respectively. The Blu-ray release features a Dutch audio track as well as Dutch and French subtitles^[36] while the DVD release features Dutch, French and German audio tracks and German subtitles.^[37] Bonus features on the DVD release include Schatteman's 2015 short film Vol mij (Follow Me).^[38]

It was released on DVD in the US by Strand Releasing on 13 May 2025.^[39] This release features Dutch and French audio tracks and English subtitles.^[40] Bonus features include the film's official trailer.

A Collector's Edition featuring a director's commentary,^[41] deleted scenes, interviews with the cast and crew and other bonus features is set to be released by Peccadillo Pictures on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK on October 2025.^[42]

It was released on DVD in France by Epicentre Films Editions on 17 June 2025. This release features a Dutch audio track and French subtitles. Bonus features include an interview with Anthony Schatteman and Xavier Rombaut, Schatteman's 2012 short film Kus me zachtjes (Kiss Me Softly), Schatteman's biography and the film's official trailer.^[43]

It also received digital releases on Amazon Prime Video,^[44] Apple TV^[45] and Streamz.^[46]

Polar Bear released a short deleted scene on 11 August 2025.^[47] The scene takes place after Valerie's pool party. Elias, feeling nervous and confused, asks Alexander if their relationship as friends is okay, he answers affirmatively.^[48]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 90% of 21 critics' reviews are positive.^[49] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 69 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.^[50]

Aurore Engelen reviewing the film at Berlinale for Cineuropa wrote, "Young Hearts is an authentic coming-of-age tale which enriches the existing body of family films with a wonderful queer love story."^[51]

Catherine Bray writing in Variety praised Lou Goossens, for being "naturalistic and able to convey subtle shades of inner turmoil, despite his young age." Praising director Anthony Schatteman for his direction wrote, "his direction feels calm and quietly confident in ways that is not always the case with a debut." Concluding her review she opined, "Young Hearts, while gentler and less obviously tear-jerking, benefits from a sincere and lived-in emotional honesty which serves its aims well."^[52]

Beatrice Loayza, writing in The New York Times wrote "Young Hearts is a more wholesome, and ultimately more cliché, endeavor. In the end, teenage brooding gives way to a sparkling fairy tale finale that shows that there was nothing for Elias to worry about, after all."^[53]

Gary M. Kramer, reviewing the film for Gay City News, lavished praise on the performances of Goossens and De Saeger, writing, "Goossens carries the film, effortlessly, and he is well matched by De Saeger, who is appropriately more relaxed and comfortable in his own skin as Alexander. De Saeger's responses to Elias' discomfort are real, and it creates a real investment for viewers to want the boys to end up together."^[54]

Diego Semerene, of Slant Magazine, awarded the film 3 out 4 stars, writing, "Tenderly observed, writer-director Anthony Schatteman's film offers the rare opportunity to indulge in a fantasy where the risks of queer love going public are anodyne, even negligible, while also leaving room for a casual critique of what we could perhaps call Nordic parenting, where children enjoy so much autonomy but are also left to their own devices."^[55]

Robert Daniels of RogerEbert.com also gave the film 3 out of 4 stars and praised Schatteman's direction, writing, "Schattenman trusts his young leads, often allowing his gentle lens to linger on their faces as new thoughts, feelings, and passions bubble to the surface."^[56]

G. Allen Johnson, writing in the San Francisco Chronicle, gave the film 3 out of 4 stars and praised the performance of Goossens as "astonishingly subtle". Writing about the film, he said, "'Young Hearts' is a film that doesn't traffic in big plot twists or dramatic reveals. It's a film that treasures fragile thoughts and feelings, rare in a film these days."^[57]

The film was selected in Generation Kplus at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival, thus it was nominated to compete for the Crystal Bear.

• Official website
• Young Hearts at IMDb 
• Young Hearts at Rotten Tomatoes
• Young Hearts at Teddy Award
• Young Hearts at Berlinale