THEMOVIES

A personal film by a tireless chronicler featuring stories by and about Indo-Dutch people. An estimated 2 million Dutch people have Indonesian roots. Yet large segments of the population, particularly young people, know little about this heritage. This is strikingly highlighted at the beginning of the film during a nationally broadcast quiz program. The film features prominent writers and artists including writers Adriaan van Dis and Yvonne Keuls, illustrator Thé Tjong Khing, composer Mariëtte Hehakaya, and many others. The now-traditional Nijmegen Four Days Marches (“Nijmeegse Vierdaagse”), originally started as a military march by the Dutch East Indies Military Reserve Corps (“Korps Koloniale Reserve”). Indo-rock bands such as The Blue Diamonds put the Netherlands on the world pop music map with their global hit “Ramona”. Using creative animation techniques* among other approaches, the director paints a powerful picture of growing up and living between two cultures—the cold receptions and outright rejection contrasted with the silence and acceptance of the rules and customs of 1950s Netherlands.