Michel Goossens

Michel Goossens (Netherlands, 1974), is a narrative and experimental filmmaker currently based in Barcelona, Spain. Despite his early love for cinema and working at a local cinema as a projectionist, lack of access to cinematic tools drove Michel to initially pursue an academic career. He studied biology and biotechnology in the Netherlands at the University of Utrecht and in Australia at the University of Western Australia. He later studied cinematography at George Brown College in Toronto, Canada. While building a career in Clinical Research, Michel wrote, produced and directed a series of low budget shorts films, among which: Ook maar een Mens (2003), Wilderness Challenge (2004), Christmas Movie (2004), Een Leven Lang (2005), Michel’s Glamorous Traveling Life (2005), Road Trip (2006) and Furry Dreams (2006), none of which were officially released. 

Following a move from Canada to Spain in early 2008, Michel started writing, directing and producing comical short films centering around the clinical research industry, employing large groups of colleagues in crew and cast roles resulting in: Quantum of Quality (2009), The Query (2010) and EDC (2012). The shorts were screened internationally to several thousand staff in the wider company where Michel worked. Also in 2011 Michel completed his first paid assignment shooting a directing a web commercial for a tour company in Switzerland.

Ready to take on a more serious film making challenge, Michel started working on a script for a high quality short intended for festival release, culminating in the short film EXIT. EXIT gave Michel first experience directing a large professional cast and crew, and shooting in a digital 35mm format. EXIT is part of 2013 Cannes festival Court Metraje and is under submission at numerous other festivals. EXIT typifies the Michel’s reductionistic approach to film, showing his combined scientific and artistic talents.

In 2013, Michel continues to combine his work as a filmmaker and a Global Project Director in Clinical Research. He completed the experimental shorts Random 1.0 and Normality 1.0, completed a video coverage of Inside Out, part of a global art project taking place outside of the Barcelona Museum of Modern Art. Michel has the short ‘Grief’ in post-production and has a conceptional documentary about violence and media as well as a narrative short in preproduction for filming in later 2013.