On day one of Cannes, friends and colleagues of Fortissimo Films co-founder Wouter Barendrecht gathered to pay tribute to his life and career, just a few hours before the fest officially kicked off. Barendrecht's sudden death of a heart condition at the age of 43 came as a shock to members of the film community all over the world. The memorial was jointly organized by several film festivals. A crowd numbering in the hundreds, packed the Palme des Plages tent behind the Palais complex to hear a few brief speeches and share personal memories. Cannes programmer Thierry Frémaux gave an emotional speech and dedicated this year's official selection to Barendrecht's memory. Fortissimo's co-president Michael Werner and colleague Nelleke Driessen announced the Wouter Barendrecht Film Foundation to encourage the work of young filmmakers.  

While Barendrecht was best known for championing independent fiction, especially from Asia, his company also consistently made room for documentary. Barendrecht served as an executive  producer for Jasmine Dellal's WHEN THE ROAD BENDS: TALES OF A GYPSY CARAVAN. Carrying on his legacy, Fortissimo just announced the acquisition of a challenging Indian doc called CHILDREN OF THE PYRE.

In keeping with Barendrecht's sense of humor, Werner joked that this gathering was a chance to show the crowd Fortissimo's latest promo reel. Werner went on to describe his business partner as being like one of those computer viruses that invade you and take over part of your heart.

For more about Wouter Barendrecht, see http://www.fortissimo.nl/whatsnew