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David Lammers • Director

Langer licht (Northern light)

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- Langer licht is the long-awaited Dutch feature film debut of promising young filmmaker David Lammers

Langer licht (Northern light) is the long-awaited Dutch feature film debut of promising young filmmaker David Lammers.
He burst onto the scene with De laatste dag van Alfred Maassen (Alfred Maassen’s last day), his Film Academy exam short film from 2001. It won him the Dutch Film Prize for best short subject and was also selected for the Cinéfondation side-bar at Cannes. At last year’s edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) he was awarded the Tiger Cub Award for his short film Veere. This year he returns to Rotterdam in the main awards competition with Langer licht [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: David Lammers
interview: Jeroen Beker
film profile
]
. The film about the mental breakdown of a boxing school owner from Amsterdam and the effect it has on the relationship with his son is also part of European Film Promotion’s Passions and promises selection.

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Cineuropa: Could you talk a bit about your cinephile education and how it influenced your own style?
David Lammers: I can only make films the way I make them. Whether that constitutes a style that I could call my own is not for me to judge. There are a lot of filmmakers who inspire me, including Francis Ford Coppola, Terrence Malick, Claire Denis and Federico Fellini. That said, I want to avoid copying them scene by scene. I always try to look for the larger dynamics at play in the story: how does one switch from the big to the small and intimate scenes, how does one create a believable world, how does one render a standard scene unique, how does one use close ups, how are content and form related, etc.

You have mentioned in earlier interviews that your film is not only about the relationship between the protagonists, but also about a summer in a northern neighbourhood of Amsterdam in general. What is the relationship between the specific needs of a film as a story and real life?
I rarely use a narrative gimmick as a starting point for a story. Instead I use a character, an arena or a specific time of the year. The actual story only comes later and in bits and pieces. Personally, I love films where one can find more than what is strictly necessary for the central narrative. When I write I go both ways: a bit of story is alternated by something inspired by the world around me; in the end it should all form a coherent whole. My inspiration comes from everyday things that happen on the streets where I pass, but I rarely use these without having to change them to have a proper function in the story. I am aware that I need some form of narrative in order for the audience to sympathize with the characters. From writing through to the editing I am looking for that perfect balance between the story I have made up and the images from real life that I have manipulated to fit the story.

In Langer licht you have worked mainly with unknown and non-professional actors. Why this choice?
The main protagonist in Langer licht is played by Raymond Thiry, a professional actor [from the theatre], as well as several of the supporting roles. I strive to create a natural and believable world in my work and for certain scenes it is necessary to work with professionals because there is such a great focus on the emotions. Even then, though, I try to find actors that fit my idea of that world and not vice versa. For the less complex roles I like to work with people from the neighbourhood [where the story is set] because they understand these roles best and are naturals at being themselves!

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