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De Betuwelijn

Short documentary, 2004, 48 min.

The director grew up in the Betuwe region herself, which was the reason to take her camera and questions to the people who are affected by the construction of the notorious Betuwelijn railway. Jenne Sipman comes across some harrowing stories: a couple that had to give up their flourishing riding stables within a year; a cherry grower who now lives next to a motorway; another couple that scarcely managed to preserve their marriage. Sipman interweaves the conversations at home with these people with quotes about the nature of the Betuwe native, with news fragments about the Betuwelijn and with footage of the construction, which steadily progresses. As a native of the Betuwe, the director knew exactly in which season she had to capture `this strip in the Netherlands, which is completely done for': all plants are in full bloom. And on the banks of the river, Sipman is proved right by a retired man, who for years has kept tally of the transportation movements over water to Germany, which have increased enormously and are much cheaper than over land. `The ships carry more than the Betuwelijn will, but The Hague is deaf to the facts.'

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