PBS Acquires Dutch Dementia Documentary Human Forever
PBS has bought the US rights to Human Forever, the Dutch documentary following activist Teun Toebes and his search for a better daily life for people living with dementia. The acquisition was reported by Deadline on 15 September 2026.
Toebes, 24, is a humanitarian activist whose stated mission is to improve the quality of life for people living with dementia. The film follows him over three years, across four continents and 11 countries. Director Jonathan de Jong travelled alongside him for the journey.
The sale came directly from Dutch independent producer Super7even Productions, meaning no outside distributor brokered the PBS deal. An acquisition in television means the broadcaster has bought the right to show the film in its territory. In this case, that territory is the United States.
PBS is the American public broadcaster, watched free-to-air across the country. A PBS slot puts a documentary in front of a broad, general audience. That is a wide window for a non-English-language film.
Australia's SBS and Iceland's RUV have also picked up Human Forever. In Europe, France's Arte, Belgium's VRT and Dutch streamer Videoland have acquired it. The deals give the one film free-TV and streaming homes in several markets at once.
Human Forever has already played in cinemas in more than 30 territories. Its producers put admissions at nearly 80,000 and describe it as the most-watched human interest documentary in Dutch cinema history. That figure and record claim come from the production team and cover its theatrical run.
The project is growing beyond the screen. De Jong and Toebes are releasing a companion book, Human Forever: Searching the World for a Better Life with Dementia, through September Publishing. De Jong has also launched SuperIndie with MN Media's Jeffrey de Graaf, organised as an integrated studio for human interest, nature and social-impact documentaries and features.
SuperIndie's first slate includes There is No Society, described as a sequel to Human Forever. The slate also lists A Girl Like Rose about Belgian supermodel Rose Bertram, plus titles named Patterns of Life, WOW! and Ecolopolis. An earlier follow-up titled Human II Forever was reported to be in production for release in 2026, focussed on how strong communities form and what can be learned from them.
For viewers, this means a cinema title is about to become much easier to find at home. PBS has not yet announced a transmission date. Watch the listings.
