SON—010: Knokke off / OFFSHŌRE
(Netflix/VRT)
Discover OFFSHŌRE, a unique musical hide-out on the beautiful coast of Knokke.
Step inside this enchanting beach cabin and let yourself be carried away by the soundtrack of the acclaimed VRT MAX series ‘Knokke Off’ while gazing out over the sea. This special place, conceived by soundtrack composer Patricia Vanneste/Sohnarr and Sonhouse in collaboration with VRT & Dingie, serves as a refuge where music and emotions come together, inspired by the symbolism of the cold sweat trickling down your back on a warm beach because your inner world feels so different from the world around you.
This musical hide-out provides a safe haven where you feel understood and find connection. It's a place of recognition for anyone who sometimes doesn't quite fit in, especially in places where fun is pretended and your inner world clashes with the outside world. In this unique setting, music becomes a powerful means to give space to your ‘inside’ and connect with others who share the same sentiment. Let the frigid grip of solitude and confusion give way to a comforting surge of understanding and togetherness. Immerse yourself in this experience, where sound and environment come together to embrace, comfort, and inspire you.
Discover the musical hide-out in Knokke and let the energy of the ‘Knokke Off’ soundtrack touch your heart as you behold the beauty of the coast. Opening hours synchronise with those of Surfers Paradise (Zeedijk-Het Zoute, thv, Appelzakstraat, 8300 Knokke-Heist). During the months of July, August and September, everyone can enjoy it from 9am every day until everyone has disappeared from the water and/or the beach.
Listen to the soundtrack below:
Watch the series on VRT MAX.
Twenty-somethings Louise and Alexander experience a seemingly carefree summer in opulent Knokke with their friends. However, due to their parents' high expectations, they risk losing themselves in luxury and partying and desperately search for something they just cannot find: true friendship, love and above all... themselves. In the process, their world is also thoroughly disrupted by the arrival of Daan and his mother Melissa. They too are searching, but mainly for the truth behind the masks...
Director Tom Goris:
“During my personal journey in shaping and directing Knokke Off, I knew that music and the soundtrack would play an essential role in addressing issues such as mental vulnerability, insecure attachment, and trauma. In my continuous search for the contrast between the inner world of our characters and their outward façade - the dazzling luxury and the heavy expectations they must bear - I felt that there was a musical element missing.
Was it coincidence or destiny? On an out-of-the-blue Monday, both Mounir Hathout from Sonhouse and Bart Cautaerts, the editor of the series, independently pointed me in the direction of Sohnarr. The musical puzzle piece I had been searching for so desperately clicked into place immediately. Patricia creates a unique connection between the inner world of the characters and the viewer, exploring feelings and relationships from the inside out.
The music of Sohnarr is like food for the soul. It builds a bridge to your inner child and carries your feelings along, allowing your thoughts the freedom to arrive and depart. Perhaps you will experience this too after a visit to Offshore? I am deeply grateful that both Patricia as a person and Sohnarr's music crossed my path and that of Knokke Off. Without the music of Sohnarr, Knokke Off would simply be Knokke.”
Bio Patricia Vanneste
Patricia is a violinist-composer who has been touring nationally and internationally with various bands and projects since the age of 17 (Balthazar, Hydrogen Sea, Amatorski, Sohnarr, Driftwood). In 2018, she decided to discard all masks and follow her own calling: using music to support people in their personal journey. As a co-founder, she left the music group Balthazar and released her debut album "Coral Dusk" under the name Sohnarr in 2020. This record was composed and recorded in the vast landscapes of Sweden and Norway while she traveled alone from hut to hut. Nature was necessary to break free from her adopted identity and reveal what had remained invisible until then. To invite people to a similar experience, she collaborated with architect Sam De Bock to design “the Sjel” (Norwegian for Soul or Essence), a nomadic musical art installation that, with its reflective walls, encourages visitors to temporarily set aside what they represent in their everyday lives and step into the merging with nature, into their very own essence.
Besides composing music for music bands, theater productions (Nieuwstedelijk) and locational-inspired projects (crematorium UITZICHT, Stijn Streuvels Vensterlanden), she now composed her first soundtrack for the acclaimed 'Knokke Off' VRT MAX series. This original soundtrack was created to capture the complex inner world of the characters, which often contrasts with their external surroundings. It reflects a world in which they are confronted with the feeling of having lost everything, despite appearing to have it all. It is a world where status and pretense prevail. Loneliness can pervade, even in the presence of companionship. Patricia aims to approach music with the intention of helping people open a door to a different state of being, using her music as a support for emotions that defy words.
In this perspective, OFFSHŌRE was conceived to provide a space of recognition for anyone who sometimes feels out of place, particularly in settings where joy is feigned, and one's state of mind conflicts with the outside world.
Platform: VRT MAX
Production Company: Dingie
Director: Tom Goris
Scenario: Luk Wyns & Nele Vandael
Music: Sohnarr (Patricia Vanneste)
Artwork: Laura Gieseke