Go Short presents a unique film walk through Nijmegen-West
Go Short and Architecture Center Nijmegen present: the resilience of Nijmegen-West. A film walk about the development of the Waalfront.
In early 2020, the world came to a standstill. We were confined to our homes and were thrown back to that which is close by. We got stuck in a digital bubble that sometimes made us forget how important the connection to the real world turns out to be. This created a revaluation for taking a walk and the connection with your own environment, with your feet while walking, the sun on your skin, and the birds chirping. New ideas were born and this walk is the lively and elaborate result of that.
The Waalfront is located on the edge of the city center: the former industrial and port area that is being transformed into a highly urban living and working area. Go Short, in collaboration with the Nijmegen Architecture Center, made a film walk about the resilience of people in this dynamic environment. Residents, entrepreneurs and designers tell you how they experience the changes, but also the common wish to maintain the ‘strong together’ feeling in Nijmegen-West. The guts to innovate and cherish the past. “Moving along is the only way you can do this. Change in the neighborhood is not about improvement or deterioration. You perceive it as the people on the water perceive it. This is what it is. Deal with it” – Eric Mol, resident Waalhaven Nijmegen.
The walk is intertwined with four short films that enhance the atmosphere of the area. Mathieu Janssen, programmer at Go Short, talks about the power of the short film. We point out special buildings on the route, hear from architect Iggie Dekkers about the developments on the Nyma site and take you into the stories of people from the Waterkwartier and the port area. The locations we pass along the way appeal to the imagination. By means of audio, film and music specially composed for this purpose by musician Frank Boeijen (the Gathering), we give you a unique view on an environment that is constantly changing.
Walk with us and marvel at the special developments in the Nijmegen harbor area during this city walk. This unique experience and making connections is very important to us and creates valuable encounters. Also during this walk, we show encounters: encounters with the city, film, and architecture. Join us on an adventure and discover, because we’ve all missed that!
Practical information
From July 16, the walk, including audio and films, will be available to everyone for free via the Go Short mobile website. The walk can be done at any time, individually or together. All you need is a smartphone and headphones. The route (max. 2 hours) starts at the Joris Ivensplein and runs under the railway bridge to the port area. Make sure your phone is charged, put on your headphones, and enjoy!
The Film Walk Nijmegen-west is a production of Go Short – International Short Film Festival Nijmegen in collaboration with Architecture Center Nijmegen and with contributions from architectural historian Michiel Kruidenier, Iggie Dekkers (Eek and Dekkers architects), Henny Linders, Eric Mol, Edwin-Niemantsverdriet. Music by Frank Boeijen, recording and editing by Jozien Wijkhuijs, web application by Bart Hofs, and photography by Gema Perez.
A total of four short films will be shown along the way. These are The Deep of PES. This film is less than 2 minutes long, making it the shortest film ever nominated for an Oscar. Workers leaving the Lumière factory by Louis Lumière is a symbol for portraying the working class. Fest is a film by Nikita Diakur, an originally Russian maker who has a fascination for the ugly and the unpredictable. The ‘tagline’ for this film is ‘drone, stunt, rave’ – which comes together nicely with the relatively new bridge landscape that has arisen here in Nijmegen, and offers space for illegal raves, from-the-bridge-in-the-water -jump stunts, and countless kitsch amateur drone videos from the island. And the animation Analysis Paralysis, one of the audience favorites of Go Short 2017, in which director Anete Melece shows a diverse park, where many different people come together and interactions arise.