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Dutch film festival in Delhi from tomorrow
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
Calcutta, Nov 19:
In collaboration with the Directorate of the Film Festivals, the Royal Netherlands Embassy is organising a Netherlands Film Festival in India in November/December. Eight feature films, including three Oscar winning films — The Assault, Antonia’s Line, and The Character, as well as six documentaries and six animation films wrn be screened.
At a press conference in Calcutta to introduce Eddy Terstall. director of the film Based on the Novel Aletta Dirkse, lead actress of the film and Marlike Jongbloed director of the documentary film Fatal Reaction Bombay, Balakrishna Dalmia, Honorary Consul of the Netherlands in Calcutta said, “The Netherlands is proud to be associated with the Fifth Calcutta Film festival in which there is special focus on the Netherlands.”
After the films are screened in Calcutta, they will travel to Delhi for the Dutch Film Festival from November 21 to 24. Prime Minister of The Netherlands Wim Kok will inaugurate the festival and, apart from other important dignitaries, the directors, actors and actresses of the Dutch films will be present.
Discussing the state of the Dutch films. Robert Aarsse, head of cultural affairs, press and information, Royal Netherlands Embassy told this correspondent: “Most of the Dutch films are art films and are not commercially successful. Of course, there are exceptions. The thriller, The Lift was extremely well received and was a commercial success.”
With the total population of just about 50 million, the average number of people watching a film is 23 million per year. Compare this with 23 million Indians watching a film every day, he said and added, “these constraints make most Dutch films commercially unviable. They are produced through government subsidies and tax breaks. Without the compulsion to make money out of the films, it allows film makers to experiment and produce quality films. The Dutch film industry is not based on stars. We are a no-star people,” says Aarsse.
Aarsse, however, acknowledged that the Dutch have not produced film directors of the stature of Bergman or Fellini. According to his personal opinion, the Dutch film industry’s greatest strength is its documentary films. The greatest documentary film maker was the late Joris Ivens. The Dutch contribution to art with great painters like Rembrandt and Van Gogh is reflected in some of its documentaries.
There are a number of Americanised Dutch films currently being produced but with the unification of Europe there is a move to produce pan-European films. Multiplicity of language is a problem, but a great director can overcome it, feels Aarsse.
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