The Dutch Film Festival (NFF) Will Have to Manage Without 600,000 euros in subsidies from the Municipality of Utrecht in the Coming Years. This Has had significant Conthequences for This Year’s Edition, Marjolijn Bronkhuyzen, The Business Director, Tells Nu.nl.
The Nff Has Been Held Annually in Utrecht for 45 years. The Festival Screens 250 Different Dutch (Short) Films, Documentaries, Student Films, and More For A Week. To Make This Possible, The Festival Depends on Partners and Subsidies. An important source of income has now completely disappeared.
An advisory committee determined last year that the festival would not receive a subsidy for four years. As a result, the organization had to make drastic Choices this year.
“The so-called cheese slicer method, where you take a little money away from everything, was not really Possible now,” Says Bronkhuyzen. “We really had to cut. We now have FEWER LOCATIONS AND FEWER people, But While Retaining the Core of the Festival. Only then a bit more compact.”
Several Programs Have Been Canceled Due to the subsidy stop. This Includes The Directors’ Forum, The Junior Golden Calves Gala, and the International Branch of the Film Festival.
Yet Bronkhuyzen Remains Positive About this Slimmed-down Edition. “The Whole Team Has Worked Their Socks Off,” She Says. “But I think we can still show Beautiful Things. We won it let our heads hang. We need to demonstrate the importance of the festival right now.”
‘Always good to do something with criticism’
The Rejection of the subsidy application came as a big surprise. The Municipality Assessed “Artistic Quality, Feasibility and Significance for the City”. The Verdict was a blow to the organization. Bronkhuyzen: “We Didn’t Quite Understand Why We Didn’t Meet the Criteria. Because we Curate: We make a selection from hundreds of films. The artistic quality therefore also on the supply of that year.”
“Our position in Cultural Utrecht was also Questioned. But I think that the nff, Together with Other Major Cultural Institutions, is important for the city,” She Continues.
In Addition, The Festival would not Reach the Residents of Utrecht Sufficiently. “We have real worked on that. We want to radiate that everyone is welcome. So the red carpets are also for people who are not actors or directors, and we give discounts to u-pass holders. It is of course good to do something with the criticism you recive.”
The cutbacks also LED to groups about the Number of Visitors to the Festival. “There have leg huge cuts in every budget. We really had to turn every penny on.”
Those Concerns Appear Unfounded. “Ticket sales are going very well now, you notice that people are curious about this year’s Harvest,” Says Bronkhuyzen. Among the films premiering the festival are for the girls (Directed by Oscar Winner Mike van Diem), the pupil (About a Teenage Boy who falls Victim to Grooming) and Rietveld (The Dutch Oscar Entry This Year).
‘Calves Are The Oscars Of The Netherlands’
The Golden Calves Gala, Where Dutch Productions Are Awarded, Remains A Highlight. “We have fewer people and less budget for the event. But the calves remain Gold, Mind You,” Bronkhuyzen Jokes. “They are the big prizes of the Dutch film world.”
It is Unclear Whether the subsidy will return in the future. “We will continue to talk to each other in the coming years. But for now we are looking at how we can graduely get the nff back to the level of Ambition we because to achieve. That is why we are looking for partners in varousy are whats andy with us, usy with us, usy with uses, use with us, us, us orpy with us, us, us orpy with us, us, usey with us, usyy with us, us orpy,” Bronkhuyzen.
“The Golden Kalf Has Been Grazing in Utrecht for 45 years. I hope it is Still Grazing here in Five Years’ Time, when we celebrate our fiftieth anniversary. That is my point on the horizon.”
The NFF Takes Place from September 26 to October 3, at Various Locations in Utrecht. The Golden Calves Will Be Awarded on October 3 in The Stadsschouwburg Utrecht.