Molenaar left school at 15 and worked as a cleaner, waitress, and bookkeeper. In 1974, aged 29, she became a
documentary filmmaker with her first film
Protest Garden. She was assistant to
Joris Ivens before she formed Molenwiek Film with
Joop van Wijk in 1978. Jointly they have produced and directed many documentaries and
short films, including
The Factory (1979) and
The Daily Nation (2000). They also produced
Xime (Guinea-Bissau, 1994) directed by
Sana Na N’Hada, which was an official selection at
Cannes Film Festival in Un Certain Regard. She has since formed her own production company HM Films, and taught at the Zelig School for Documentary, Television and New Media. == Filmography ==