Doortje van der Lee

"Life isn't always easy. You meet yourself. You meet others. You meet life."

Doortje writes children's books, stories and tools to amaze and deepen. She helps children to think interdisciplinarily, in order to understand the world around them. With her company, Life. Productions, they believe that books and stories provide insight: into yourself, into others and into the world. Her first book will be released in January 2025 and they are working on several beautiful projects.

You find grief an important theme - why is that?

When I was pregnant with our first child, my father-in-law passed away. I found it so sad that my daughter would grow up without knowing that part of her background. I wanted to create something to tell her about him, but also to make the subject discussable. That became 'Where is Epi?'

Ever since I was a little girl, I have been amazed by Big Questions that adults often had no answer to. Where are you when you die? It seemed so abstract. It struck me that 'death' was such a subject that people prefer not to talk about. Certainly not with children. Strangely enough, that is still the case today. There are even schools where I bring my book to the attention and where the response I get is: 'That subject is not relevant to us'. How is that possible? Or; 'We already talked about that recently and we prefer not to talk about it with the children'. That is why I think your initiative is fantastic. It makes it so accessible to talk about loss and grief.

I really wish for my two children that these kinds of taboos can be discussed, after all, they are part of life.

Did you experience grief as a child? Or can you remember something about it?

Not as a child, but as a young adult (20 years old) - then an old friend of mine died in a very absurd scooter accident. It was very bad luck. He was 27. That had such an impact that for a long time I didn't know what I actually felt about it. It was so unreal and I had not been given any tools to deal with it. In my environment everything just continued and there was no one who took me by the hand or advised me to talk about it. No one who really asked me questions about him, or what he had meant to me in the first place. I hope that together we can ensure that children, young people, but also adults do know how to find the tools to make something like this discussable and to keep it that way.

Do you believe in life after death?

Yes. I believe that everything is energy and that energy continues to exist. In whatever form. The Circle of Life.

You must be very proud of Life Productions. Who inspires you?

It still feels a little surreal that I actually started doing this, but I am incredibly grateful that this came my way.

My father has inspired me my whole life. His intelligence, his love for knowledge, the way he looks at the world and dedicates his whole life to making that world a little more beautiful for the people around him.

What do you dream of with Life Productions?

I am committed to ensuring that Life. Productions can bring about change in how we deal with Big Questions, loaded topics and so-called difficult themes. That we can create a loving foundation from which adults and children can engage in conversation. So that those children feel empowered to express themselves in any situation. As far as I am concerned, that will be something that is available worldwide.

What's your next project or product launch?

We are very busy with our second book, which will be released in May. It is about identity and self-acceptance. Very important topics in our opinion.
But this theme is also presented very light-heartedly and playfully, with humor and incredibly fun pictures. And a new book will be released shortly after the summer. I can't share that topic yet. In addition, I am working with a team of experts to set up targeted webinars around these kinds of topics. Enough to do.

Want to know more?

For more information about Doortje van der Lee and Life. Productions, click here!