The Children of Ruinerwold

On October 13, 2019, the Dutch village Ruinerwold became world news when a man walked into a local bar and requested help. When the police arrives, he tells them that his father has kept him and his five siblings isolated from the world, secluded on a hidden farm for years. 

The father, Gerrit Jan van Dorsten, was a self-proclaimed prophet, who taught his children that the outside world is a dangerous place and that they should never go outside of the farm. It appears that van Dorsten has three more children, all adults that have fled the farm earlier. Their father was arrested on charges of deprivation of freedom, physical abuse, sexual abuse and money laundering. The nine mysterious children of Ruinerwold were all everyone could talk about for days. 

A week after the farm’s discovery, filmmaker Jessica Villerius started what would turn into 18 months of intensive filming with the four oldest children. In this four part series, we follow them as they adapt to life outside the farm and cope to terms with all they have lived through. They talk about their hidden existence, the faith of their father and the alleged abuse within the family. We also see them celebrate a birthday for the first time, receive their own ID and visit their father in prison. Exclusive access to footage filmed by their father of their time in the farm adds added weight to their testimonies. 

Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

Episode 4

Bonus Episode