Roomies

Directed by Flo Van Deuren, Kato De Boeck

Lesbian love, shared apartment chaos, and coming of age: Bibi and Ama learn what adulthood means beyond labels.

Synopsis

For their final year of college, Bibi and Ama, two lesbian friends in their early twenties, move in together in a new apartment in Brussels. Despite their opposite personalities and backgrounds, the quirky duo believes to be ready for their grown-up lives as roomies. The only thing left now is figuring out what on earth being a grown-up means. As it soon turns out, Bibi and Ama are kicking off their journey with quite a different agenda: Bibi, clearly hung up on her high school best friend Telma, dreams of having a girlfriend, while Ama, desperately trying to cut ties with her ex Samira, wants to live as freely as possible. ROOMIES was directed by Flo Van Deuren and Kato De Boeck and tells a queer story that found a large audience in Belgium. The series captivates with its realistic view of growing up and its sensitive portrayal of young women rediscovering themselves between friendship and love. Produced by De Wereldvrede, the project comprises eight half-hour episodes that are cinematically characterized by a mixture of intimacy and precise observation. The series premiered in 2023 in the “Short Form” category at CANNESERIES, where it received international attention and was praised for its honesty and emotional depth. At the 2023 Ensor Awards, ROOMIES won several awards, including Best Fiction Series, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Music. These successes made the work a flagship of modern Belgian series craftsmanship and an important contribution to queer television culture in Europe.

Festivals & Awards

Film Fest Oostende, De Ensors

Director: Flo Van Deuren, Kato De Boeck
Genres: Drama, Comedy, Queer
Casting: Ahlaam Teghadouini Laura De Geest Martha Canga Antonio Romy Lauwers Khadija El Kharraz Alami

Year: 2022
Country: Belgium
Rating: 12
Audio: Dutch
Subtitles: German, English

Episodes

Episode 1·24min

Cardboard Boxes: Bibi and Ama turn out to be roomies with quite a different agenda. While Ama desperately tries to avoid her ex-girlfriend Samira, Bibi spends the evening with her “best friend” Telma. Both roomies end up in an awkward sleepover.

Episode 2·25min

Flipper: When their upstairs neighbor goes missing, Bibi and Ama throw themselves into a detective game to find out what happened. When Bibi leaves the mission to join Telma to an event in their hometown, Ama gets caught up in an uncomfortable situation.

Episode 3·26min

Sparkle Head: When a brokenhearted Bibi invites Telma to a party with Ama anyway, Ama decides to get things moving and tries to set Bibi up with Martha. What Ama hereby forgets, is that there might as well be obstacles for her that night.

Episode 4·22min

St. Jozef: When Ama’s father Jozef unexpectedly shows up at Bibi’s family dinner, it quickly turns out he has ill intentions. When the evening turns into an awkward disaster, Ama distracts herself by pushing Bibi into taking the next step with Martha.

Episode 5·22min

Les Filles: When Ama begs Bibi to babysit their neighbor’s creepy daughter, Bibi turns her date with Martha into a group event. Bibi witnesses how well Ama and Martha are getting along and soon regrets this decision.

Episode 6·24min

Home Sweet Home: While Bibi takes a break from Brussels by visiting her parents in her old hometown, Ama joins Samira to a work event to help her out. It doesn’t take long before both roomies regret their latest decision.

Episode 7·30min

WAP: Back in Brussels, Bibi decides to give her relationship with Martha another try. Ama gets tricked into a difficult conversation with Samira. When a drunken Bibi comes home, Ama can’t help but to finally open up to her.

Episode 8·24min

That rocks: At their graduation show, Bibi desperately tries to keep her new girlfriend away from her parents, while Ama has to deal with the fact that no one showed up for her. When Ama goes missing that same night, Bibi ditches everyone.