Amateurfilm in Limburg, Limburg in amateurfilm

Samenvatting

This paper argues that the study of amateur films and amateur film practices can provide unique insights into twentieth century life, particularly when focussing on specific regions. The contribution explores amateur films made in the Dutch province of Limburg, zooming in on publicly accessible films in the ‘film collection Limburg’, whose contents and historical development are described. Three different manifestations of amateur films in Limburg are distinguished and analysed: family and hobby films, club films, and ‘alternative’ films. For the historical analysis of these manifestations of amateur film and their related modes of practice, the study applies a framework zeroing in on transition periods, referring to both technological and social-cultural developments, rather than successive periods of practice dominated by a specific technology. Specific attention is given to interactions between user generations. It turns out, for instance, that many amateur club filmmakers skipped analogue video and continued filming on super-8 till digital video offered appropriate editing tools. In general, for a relatively long time, amateur filmmaking in Limburg remained a rather exclusive hobby for elite men. Club activities only emerged after WWII, which explains the lack of a strong avant-garde filmmaking tradition in Limburg. Euregional activities troubled the relationships with the national association of amateur filmmakers in the 1970s. Infrastructures for the dissemination of amateur films, such as local youth centres or provincial television broadcasting, and the emergence of global media platforms, such as YouTube, challenge the relationships between amateurs and professionals up until today.