Berend Boorsma studied fine art at the Art Academy in Maastricht. After graduation (2000) he went on to make experimental art films and subsequently Music Video’s for well knows dutch Bands such as DIRECT, LOIS LANE and BIRGIT. While gradually moving into Commercial ads for popular brands like MTV, COCA COLA and HEINEKEN Berend studied Media and Culture at the UVA (University of Amsterdam) majoring in Film. With his commercial work he won several EFFIE AWARDS for most affective ads.

Together with his brother Roel Boorsma he directed two short fims, PSALM 69 (2005) and BRAT (2008) and was selected as one of 20 students from around the world to participate on the Script Development Programme (2006) at BINGER FILMLAB in Amsterdam, Netherlands, together with his brother. Working on their project MILO they hooked up with Heather Imani, a London based writer. They formed a strong working relationship, and following graduation, the Boorsma brothers invited Heather to co-develop and co-write their original feature film project MILO. An early draft of the screenplay won the Kodak NPP Development Prize for best feature project and script pitch at the Netherlands Film Festival 2007, and MILO went on to secure production finance in 2010/2011.

Directed by Berend & Roel Boorsma and produced by Fu Works (Netherlands) and Samson Films (Republic of Ireland), MILO has gone on to win a Special Jury Prize at its world premiere at the Giffoni Film Festival, Italy, in July 2012. MILO was selected to open the Cinekid Film Festival (Netherlands) in October 2012, at which it also won the MovieSquad Cinekid Best International Children’s Film Award. MILO is also officially selected for the JAMESON FILMFESTIVAL in Dublin (2013)

Berend and Roel Boormsa have also written for WESTERLING, a psychological drama set straight after world war two, about the ducth Indonesian conflict. They’ve also worked together on ONDERWERELD, a psychological thriller.

THE ACTUARY, is their second feature film project which they are currenty developing with co- writer Hetaher Imani and Montecatini (Netherlands) Berend and Roel are also currently developing a new feature film screenplay entitled PARADISO, with writer Moniek Kramer and EYEWORKS, a production company based in the Netherlands and a Mockumentary called DON POLLO in collaboration with Revolver films.

Berend Boorsma is also a fine art painter and lives in Amsterdam.