Corsokoorts

Every year on the first Sunday in September, the village of Zundert in the Dutch province of Brabant is turned upside down. On this day, seventeen different hamlets enthusiastically compete for the first prize in the local flower pageant. Tens of thousands of visitors pour in to watch the parade. The floats are breathtaking constructions with specific mottoes and special names such as Zenith or the Seven Wonders of the World. The floats are bedecked with hundreds of thousands of brightly coloured dahlias, which are carefully cultivated in the months preceding the pageant in Zundert. For months, the float builders put their hearts and souls into their platforms. Four storeys high, colossal tents tower above the houses. Inside, an infectious activity takes place. As the construction progresses, the tension builds. Pride, perseverance, joy and disappointment are the emotions released by the workers on the road to the supreme moment. The announcement of the prize winners causes an eruption of emotions and festivities, which go on until the wee hours. CORSOKOORTS follows the events in Zundert in the period preceding and during the pageant. For the main characters in the film, this annual event is something to hold on to in daily life, or a dream, or an escape. In any case, for each of them it is impossible to imagine their lives without it.