The Clearing is a 2004 rama / thriller film, and is a directorial debut by Pieter Jan Brugge, an Academy Award nominated producer. The film is loosely based on the real-life kidnapping of Gerrit Jan Heijn that took place in the Netherlands in 1987. The screenplay was written by Justin Haythe. The film went direct-to video in the United Kingdom. The film was shot in and around Asheville, North Carolina.