In 1994 I made my first film. It was a film about brassbands in Bolivia and it was my graduation film in Visual Anthropology at the University of Amsterdam. Specialisation: music and Latin-America. For a year, I wandered around with a brass orchestra in the Andean highlands of Bolivia. I made film recordings and also played along on tuba. It was an experience that is etched in my memory to this day. A fond memory of the rawness of life on the plateau, the bond and friendship between the musicians, the exuberant brass music and the magical world view of the people, who literally and figuratively blew me away.
My trip to Bolivia was the first of many wanderings to far-flung corners of the world where I was allowed to be part of the local (music)scene for a while with my camera and sometimes also with my tuba. From this involvement I make my films, tell my stories and research music cultures and traditions all over the world.
Most of my films have music and musical cultures as their subject. But I also make films about other themes, for example about Buddhism in the Netherlands, for an exhibition in the Museum Volkenkunde, in Leiden.
Many films are based on a visual anthropological or ethnomusicological research, which I usually conduct myself. But the films doesn’t have a strictly scientific approach. They are based on a profound research but the storytelling occurs more on a personal level, through my eyes.
I have carried out films and research projects for museums, festivals, events, universities and television. In recent years I have also increasingly made experimental films and video poetry with dancers, musicians and other creatives. On this website you will find more information. If you are interested in buying or watching a film, please contact me.