Johan Nijenhuis
Born 1968, Markelo (the Netherlands). He studied at the Amsterdam Film Academy. Then he produced, wrote and directed several TV series. In 2001 he made his first feature film as a director, COSTA!, followed by: FULL MOON PARTY (VOLLE MAAN, 2002); the ZOO RANGERS trilogy, consisting of ZOO RANGERS IN AFRICA (ZOOP IN AFRIKA, 2005), ZOO RANGERS IN INDIA (ZOOP IN INDIA, 2006) and ZOO RANGERS IN SOUTH AMERICA (ZOOP IN ZUID-AMERIKA, 2007); ALIBI (2008); FUCHSIA THE MINI WITCH (FOEKSIA DE MINIHEKS, 2010), Best Film in the Elements +6 section at the GEX 2011; BENNIE BRAT (BENNIE STOUT, 2011); LOVING IBIZA (VERLIEFD OP IBIZA, 2013); A TUSCAN WEDDING (TOSCAANSE BRUILOFT, 2014).

Director’s statement
“When the prohibition of child labour came into effect, not much changed. It was only when a law was passed for the compulsory schooling of children, that child slavery ended. In the Netherlands, this happened in the year 1900, but in various other countries children still spend their days in dark factories.
“In the film MONKEY BUSINESS FROM A TO Z, orphan Wim is able to improve his fate. But it requires the entire community’s effort. He is helped by farmers, schoolmasters, legislators and classmates. They teach him how to read and play outside. MONKEY BUSINESS FROM A TO Z shows the resilience of a child in difficult circumstances, a courageous child who never gives up.
“In the film, I tried to consistently use Wim’s point-of-view, so that we see the world of the past through his eyes. Filming in 3D with children and monkeys on a film set was a challenge. The 9-year-old leading actor, Tygo Bussemakers, took on this challenge with me. After he had met the monkey Frits and these two learned to get along well, the filming could start.
“The children speak the dialect of the South of the Netherlands in the film. This gives the film an authentic feel and it reminds me of the past because my own parents used to speak that dialect”.