Safien van Westing

Born

2003-10-28

Birthplace

Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Biography

Safien is a young director born and raised in Amsterdam. She attended an arts-focused high school, where she began writing and directing her first short films. In 2021, after graduating, she moved to Denmark to study at the European Film College, further developing her voice as a filmmaker. After completing her studies, Safien relocated to Berlin, where she spent three years working at the international production company ANORAK Film. During her time there, the company produced and financed her short film Philophobic. The film screened at international festivals, including New York Film Week, and earned Safien the Best Young Filmmaker award at the Wimbledon Short Film Festival. She also directed the music video Backwards Into U for the artist Ledbyher. Safien is currently studying Directing at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, one of Europe's leading film schools. Through her work, she explores the impact of digitalization on Generation Z, examining how technology reshapes identity, intimacy, and the loss of genuine human connection. Her films are driven by a fascination with the emotional complexities of growing up in an increasingly digital world.