Onderzoeksartikel

Voorbij het drama: Nederlandse documentairemakers en multiculturaliteit

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Abstract

At the turn of the century, multiculturalism ranks high on the political agenda in The Netherlands. This article discusses the role multicultural issues play in the work of eight renowned Dutch documentary makers. The genre of documentary, with its balancing act between fiction and reality, assumingly facilitates a subtle representation of ethnic minorities. Makers value the artistic dimension of the genre higher than the journalistic side. Only when the multicultural society comes close to the personal lives of the makers will it be included in their oeuvre. Two personal repertoires (the ‘authors’ and the ‘missionary’ repertoire) are distinguished, together with two political repertoires (the ‘integration’ and the ‘confrontation’ repertoire). Personal repertoires prevail above political repertoires in the discourse of the makers. It is argued that political or academic persuasion on makers to become more sensitive to multicultural issues runs the danger of being overtly paternalistic while ignoring the personal motivations of makers. There is a need to critically interrogate the concept of multiculturalism, in particular its colored bias, its singular focus on ethnicity, and its essentialistic tendencies. We argue for the inclusion of more parameters of difference in multicultural research, that acknowledge the multiple dividing lines that run through Dutch society, based on, for example, class, gender, sexuality and region.

How to Cite:

De Kloet, J. & Van Donk, J., (2004) “Voorbij het drama: Nederlandse documentairemakers en multiculturaliteit”, Tijdschrift voor Communicatiewetenschap 32(3), 271–291. doi: https://doi.org/10.21825/tvc.93107