Programmer, feature films and short films, International Film Festival Rotterdam
International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) blew Koen de Rooij’s mind as a teenager visiting the festival starting in 2007. “It opened my eyes to the enormous variety of cinema that’s out there, discovering the most unexpected gems from the most unexpected directions,” he says.
When studying for his masters in media studies at the Netherlands’ Leiden University, de Rooij interviewed the festival about its Hubert Bals Fund, and soon scored an internship with the short film selection committee. In 2017 he was invited to join the shorts programming team, and in 2022 he also took on features.
Two of his personal favourites from this year’s IFFR selection were Crazy Lotus by Naween Noppakun and The Inescapable Desire Of Roots by Mark Chua and Lam Li Shuen. “Both films are very political at heart but find such a creative, crazy and playful way to address the issues they want to talk about.”
He became interested in Japanese cinema as a teenager, especially the works of Shinya Tsukamoto, Takeshi Kitano and Takashi Miike, and still has an affinity for East Asian and Southeast Asian cinema. Like every programmer, he can sometimes feel overwhelmed by the volume of work to watch each year. But, he adds, “I am also lucky to have hobbies like reading and going to concerts or music festivals, where my eyes can take a break from the screen and recharge.”
IFFR feels like the perfect home. “From the open mind to literally everything that cinema can, wants to, or tries to be, to the new connections that are established between filmmakers and audiences, to the very conscious absence of red carpets — it all fits my personality very well.”
Contact: Koen de Rooij
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