Over three decades, the Belgian siblings have watched society’s margins with a steady, unflinching eye. They sit among the world’s most honored filmmakers, earning the Cannes Palme d’Or along the way. Their signature remains a disciplined, restrained form, tightly plotted narratives, and an exacting sense of rhythm. In their twelfth feature, Tori and Lokita, they deliver a gripping portrait of two sub-Saharan youths drawn into Liège’s criminal underworld to prove that their method still cuts deep.
What sparked this story?
LD: A decade ago, they encountered a troubling pattern: unaccompanied foreign minors vanishing without explanation. In democratic systems, laws and child protections exist on paper, yet deportation looms at eighteen for many young migrants. Some slip into the shadows to dodge removal, while an underground market lurks nearby ready to exploit them. When a body never surfaces, the truth becomes harder to grasp.
JP.D.: The aim was to center the friendship between two sub-Saharan youths. Psychological studies suggest that loneliness in a new country deepens distress, and friendship can serve as a vital lifeline for survival.
Tori and Lokita, and migration in its many forms, why does it endure?
LD: Because the lesson has not been fully learned. Political leaders often treat immigration as a problem to be managed through rules. Yet migration is an enduring human story; no culture grows in isolation without exchange. Immigrants do not come to take; they enrich. The law should offer more hospitality, more integration, and stronger education systems.
European responses to African migrants contrast with attitudes toward Ukrainian arrivals in recent years. What is your perspective?
JP.D.: The uneven treatment hints at racial bias, with Europe showing solidarity more readily toward white, Christian newcomers. Still, the European Union has shown genuine support for Ukrainians, a sign of a shared obligation to those harassed by tyranny. It would be naive to claim the lesson is complete, but it is a start. The next step is to acknowledge and address drownings at sea.
The rise of the far right makes this challenge harder, surely.
LD: Rather than deliver moral sermons, the concern feels urgent. As a European, the growth of hate speech worries him. How can slogans gain traction in modern, prosperous democracies? The answer varies by country, but it is clear that the far right borrows symbols and tactics from other ideologies, attempting to forge community through shared xenophobia.
A recurring question is whether cinema can change things.
JP.D.: The film is dedicated to a French bakery owner who spoke out when his Guinean apprentice, just 18, faced deportation. Citizen support helped him stay, and today he is a respected baker. Stories like this matter; cinema can shift perceptions. Films may not rewrite laws, but they can challenge prejudice.
Many of the brothers’ films feature children. Is that a deliberate choice?
LD: Not a coincidence. The world is seen through a child’s eyes because children are often the most vulnerable, the most overlooked or exploited. A child’s pain demands acknowledgment without compromise or ideology.
Their cinema has helped inspire a generation of young directors who are creating Dardennian-inspired films. Does that encouragement trouble him or delight him?
JP.D.: The response is positive. They are influenced by the masters they admire, but the goal is to use those techniques to enrich new stories. A film that relies solely on imitation lacks soul; real work comes from weaving personal vision into the craft.