INTERVIEWS
Young Dutch director makes cross-cultural documentary: Hans Groenendijk's success story
Last year the 28-year old Dutch director Hans Groenendijk made his debut as a documentary film maker with ‘Sayed, Soccer Talent’. The 28-minute film tells the story of 9-year old Sayed Abdullah Sulaiman from Kuwait, who dreams of becoming an international football icon. The young player's father posts a home video of his son's playing on the internet on SoccerTalents.tv and the boy gets invited at Feyenoord and FC Barcelona for a trial.
The documentary became an instant success. It was selected for the Gulf Film Festival in Dubai, did some European festivals and was sold to Dutch and foreign broadcasters. A great result for the relatively new international director. Cinema Workshop interviewed Hans Groenendijk.
Q: How did the idea for this documentary arise?
HG: A friend of mine told me that a Kuwaiti boy was joining Feyenoord for a short while. I did some research and realized that this was really an amazing story. I was especially interested because my professional career started in sports journalism a few years ago and I am familiar with the sports world.
Q: What particular challenges did you face in making such a cross- cultural film?
HG: We had to film both in Rotterdam and Kuwait, which are very different places, and we had to show objectively the cultural and environmental contrasts between Holland and Kuwait. We were also filming a young boy, and it was important to portray him in the right way. I think the way we did it worked, because people liked it.
Q: Did you feel your film was well received in the Middle East?
HG: I was pleased with the reactions. It was a very special honour for me to be invited into the Gulf Film Festival in Dubai, which made a great impression on me. The festival was well organized and I met some really interesting people. It was useful to meet foreign colleagues and discuss film making.
Q: Has the success of your first film created new opportunities for you?
HG: The media attention and the success of the film certainly opened some interesting new doors. I hope to stay in contact with Middle-Eastern film making. The industry is really developing at the moment and I think it’s interesting to create cross-cultural projects.
Q: It seems the story of Sayed did not end with the film. Can you tell us what happened?
HG: A few weeks ago it was announced that Sayed Abdullah Sulaiman will play for Excelsior Rotterdam this year. The ‘transfer’ instantly caught media attention. Of course it’s special that such a talented boy from the Middle-East joins a professional team in Rotterdam
Dutch and international media contacted me for details, and they even put a huge picture of Sayed on the front page of one of the national newspapers. The family have moved to the Netherlands. Sayed's father Reida Sulaiman found a job and Sayed has joined the Dutch professional youth academy.They live really nearby now, so I can help them settle in Holland. And maybe we can continue filming the talented boy.
Hans Groenendijk can be contacted through hans@groenergras.tv. More activities of his production company can be found at www.groenergras.tv.
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