SAND, WIND, WATER
Sharp sand blowing off the dunes, raging gales and cutting rains, all this the makers of this new film had to contend with during two years of filming Dutch nature. The film doesn’t show much of that. Instead, we see digging insects, lovely orchids, and a rare short-toed eagle (Circaetus gallicus). But we also get to see trucks and bulldozers, for the film is all about the truly surprising effects of the nature restoring projects of the Dune Water Company. One of those effects is the return of the ‘pussy-toes’ (Antennaria dioica) in the area after a hundred years’ absence, a small miracle made visible in the film. Visitors on foot or on bicycles can now enjoy the new landscape and regained beauty of Meijendel. They have already started photographing, filming and even painting it all. You can share their pleasure.
See the new film SAND, WIND, WATER on Sunday 22 June 2008 at 12.30, 14.00 or 15.30h. Dune Water Company Duinwaterbedrijf Zuid-Holland offer a free showing in the Museon, Stadhouderslaan 37, The Hague, tel. 070 - 338 13 38.

The frog valleys taking a prominent place in the film are also open to visitors So you can see both the film and the real thing on this day. For more information go to www.dzh.nl

Jan van den Ende at work mounting the 16mm film. SAND, WIND, WATER was filmed on Kodak Vision 2. The working copy was mounted in the classic tradition using a Steenbeck mounting table.

In order to film foxes or deer, you have to make yourself invisible. The filmers used their car as a place of concealment. A military camouflage net is ideal to disguise the shape of the car. The next part can be tedious; it consists of waiting and waiting. But it worked: deer came quite close and some human wildlife – joggers on forbidden territory – also passed the camouflaged car without spotting it.

The part of the dunes called 'De Ganzenhoek' (Goose Corner) is just north of Meijendel. The cycle and bridle paths pass right along its boundaries. In that fashion, visitors could easily watch the restructuring work during the 2007/2008 winter period. The company has stopped the water collection from the basins, and the pipes and wells were removed. At the special request of the visitors, the basin itself was maintained as a seepage basin, attracting birds. Around it a footpath was made, for which some bushes and trees were removed.

Monique is listening to the sound effects produced at the Bob Kommer sound studio in The Hague. Ronald Nadorp comments on the effect as Jeroen Nadorp produces the sounds required for various scenes in the film.

During the winter of 2006/2007 the infiltration area called 'De Loopert' was cleaned. The area is just behind the water tower of Scheveningen and is not open to visitors. A thick layer of sediment was removed. No new water was pumped into the basins, although the remaining water was still used by the company. The big WACO pipe connects two parts of the basin system. It is covered by a thick layer of sand, permitting animals any size between mice and deer to move between the shores of the two basins whenever they want.

Film company Van den Ende c.v., established in 1975, specializes in nature documentaries. The team consists of Monique van den Broek and Jan van den Ende. The documentaries are made on the basis of 16mm films. All films are shown on 16mm film or video. Copies for distribution are available on video or DVD.

In their documentaries, Jan and Monique show nature reserves, animals and plants in their natural habitats, in beautiful and sometimes rare close-ups. The films stress the fine natural balance between all life, and they often give an impression of the history of an area, because the makers feel that the present cannot exist without the past . 

The aim of the films is introducing the broad public to nature, and Man’s part in it. Only when people realize the beauty and value of nature, even in small spots in their own surroundings, will they make the effort of trying to protect that nature.  

The first film the team made was a documentary on wildlife in the Dutch dunes. On 12 March 2002 they were awarded the Dr.Abraham Schierbeek Prize for their collection of films on the Dutch dunes, presented by the Mayor of The Hague 

All documentaries made by Van den Ende c.v. are sent to international film festivals in order to give wider publicity to the beauties of Nature in the Netherlands. Most films are nominated and are shown to a wider public. The films also gained awards in the USA, Russia, India, Iran, the Czech Republic and Poland.