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Etty Now Streaming on ARTE With a Present-Day Amsterdam Setting

The drama places Etty Hillesum’s story in a present-day Amsterdam to stress parallels with rising authoritarianism.

Overview

  • The six-part series, which launched on ARTE’s Mediathek on Wednesday, will debut on ARTE’s linear channel on May 21 at 21:40.
  • The show adapts the diaries of Dutch-Jewish writer Etty Hillesum to portray life under Nazi rule while giving the city a contemporary look and sound.
  • Creator Hagai Levi frames the story in a “non-time” present to underscore what he describes as pre-fascist currents today.
  • Julia Windischbauer stars as Etty and Sebastian Koch plays Julius Spier, a real therapist who fled Germany and practiced a hand-reading based method in Amsterdam.
  • A Dutch-German-French co-production backed by ARTE and SWR, the series premiered at the 2025 Venice Biennale and has drawn praise for its performances and bold approach.