Expat Cinema
Expat Cinema shows film with English subtitles
We can’t say it often enough: Schuur is for everyone
Did you know that almost 9.5% of all residents in Haarlem and the surrounding area are expats? Since last year, we have been organizing Expat Cinema for this community in collaboration with expatsHaarlem every week, where we show a film with English subtitles.
One of the initiators of expatsHaarlem, and Expat Cinema, is Arianna Ardia. Born in Italy, Arianna moved to the Netherlands when she was 18 and has been living in Haarlem for a long time. In 2014, she and a group of friends noticed that their city was not really internationally oriented. They were in need of practical (English) information, but also more connection with the city and with other residents of Haarlem. This is how expats Haarlem was born.
Arianna, why do you like that we organize Expat Cinema together?
“De Schuur’s programming matches the interests of our readers. De Schuur is also open to input from the community and their wishes. And of course it is a great beautiful building, super central in the city, with a nice bar!
The first edition of Expat Cinema was Do Not Hesitate, a Dutch film that was also entered for the Oscars. This way we introduced expats and Dutchies (see box) to high-quality Dutch cinema. Thanks to the English subtitles, even those who don’t speak enough Dutch yet can join in and integrate. And those who already understand the language can practice their Dutch. Conversely, Dutch speakers can improve their English. For example, there were also a number of Dutch teenagers in the room.
With the subsequent films, The hand of God and Amélie, an Italian and French film with English subtitles, we reached out to those who like good European films but who don’t yet master the Dutch language or feel entirely comfortable with it. And of course also the Italian and French expats who get the feeling of home again. Because integration is good, but preserving one’s own identity and culture is also important for the well-being of a person.”
What are the reactions of the visitors so far?
“Super excited! The first editions were sold out. But if it had not been the case, the Schuur and expatsHaarlem would also have been content, because the end goal really is to make quality film accessible to a wider audience.”
Does this collaboration taste like more in the future?
“Of course! We have already organized several activities for Expat Cinema together with De Schuur (and other Haarlem partners). We hope that after Corona we can repeat a number of successful projects. In addition, we have already brainstormed about new events. Hopefully we won’t have to wait long to present these great initiatives to you. We are really looking forward to it!”
ExpatsHaarlem is a community and media platform with 6,500 registered members, 8,000 followers on social media and almost 13,000 website visitors every month. ExpatsHaarlem offers information, shares news, organizes events and meetings for young and old. They also have a network of professionals that helps expats with questions about housing, finance, legal advice, education and learning the Dutch language. The community is not only there for expats, but also for ‘Dutchies’, Dutch-speaking newcomers in Haarlem, who want to feel more local and want to integrate with the Haarlemmers or locals who feel international. There is also an expats department in Haarlemmermeer.
Expat Cinema, every week on Sunday.