What Mariska van der Meij says to watch to learn Dutch
These are the Dutch series and films I recommend to my students.
Intermediate
3 picks
B&B Vol Liefde
Single Dutch B&B owners abroad hope one of their guests turns into a partner. It is hours of unscripted conversation at normal speed, and the plot pulls you along even when the words get away from you.
Intermediate
Boer zoekt vrouw
Farmers across the country look for a partner, filmed at home on the farm. You get real regional accents and the way people speak when nobody has written it down for them.
Intermediate
Heel Holland Bakt
Ten home bakers compete for the title of best baker in the Netherlands, and everything on screen shows you what the words mean. The kitchen vocabulary comes back every episode, which is what makes it stick.
Intermediate
Intermediate-Advanced
3 picks
Alles is Liefde
A Sinterklaas romantic comedy with a dozen Amsterdam storylines that cross over by the end. Half a crash course in the biggest holiday in the Dutch calendar, half an hour and a half of people talking to each other the way they really do.
Intermediate-Advanced
Dirty Lines
Amsterdam in the late 1980s, where two brothers launch Europe's first erotic phone line and a psychology student takes a job answering it. Fast, slangy, adult, and a good ear workout once you can follow a scene.
Intermediate-Advanced
Máxima
Videoland's drama about Máxima Zorreguieta before she became queen of the Netherlands, from Buenos Aires and New York to the Dutch royal family. Much of the early story plays out abroad, so the Dutch arrives in stretches rather than all at once.
Intermediate-Advanced
Mariska van der Meij teaches Dutch at Dutch Speaking Academy. These are their own recommendations, shared with Reelang. Found this useful? See picks in other languages.