Meet our team: Bas Mastboom

Hi, I’m Bas Mastboom, from the metropolis Lonneker in Twente but I currently live in Rotterdam, not even five minutes by bike from the office. My official title at IFFR is Head of Production. The festival is relatively new to me. I got hired because of my experience as a producer in the cultural field in Rotterdam, mostly for the Rooftop Days and the Architecture Month. This is my first time working for a film festival. 

You’re a relative newcomer in the organisation. Can you share your first impressions?

Let’s put it like this: I have felt many emotions, but I have not been bored yet.

Given that this is your first festival edition at IFFR, what are you most looking forward to?

All of it coming together, cliché but true: seeing everyone enjoy the festival, not just guests and visitors, but also all volunteers and everyone working for the festival in front and behind the screens. When everyone has a good time they are motivated to go the extra mile and make the best festival possible.

Which three qualities do you think are most important in the production field?

Firstly, being hands-on: it’s important to be very reachable and approachable. Secondly, knowing where, when and what to prioritise from coordination through to execution. In my experience you must also be creative with the rules (read between the lines: don’t be scared to break the rules in order to get things done). 

One thing is for sure: it’s never boring, it’s spectacular.

How do you ensure a positive, enjoyable experience for parties involved? 

As my dear manager Marije says on quite a regular basis: we are organising a festival, it should be festive. I fully agree with that. The amount of fun we have in the organisation in the lead up to the festival will certainly be noticeable during the festival. 

Therefore we (and I) make sure our office-jungle is one with drinks and parties and lots of jokes alongside daily work. The difference with working in the corporate field couldn’t be bigger in my experience. I see it as my duty to make sure everyone has the most enjoyable experience possible. 

What does film mean to you?

I’m a theatre person. What I love most about film is all that theatre cannot offer me; being special effects and cinematic emotions because of zooming and editing and such. The dreamy sort of musical movie is my absolute favourite, such as La La Land and The Great Gatsby. I love absurdism, which can be shown stronger in film than theatre mostly. My favourite artist in the world, Lana del Rey, has the most cinematic music videos in my opinion, which I adore. 

If you’d be a filmmaker yourself, what would your film be about?

Maybe a bit narcissistic of me, but it would be a film adaptation of my solo theatre one person show debut, Lana del Gay, a parallel research about the life of Lana del Rey and myself. A search for freedom by creating alternative personas and/or dreamworlds. 

It would be hysterical, flamboyant, dramatic, absurdist and Queer AF. 

One thing people at IFFR don’t know about me is 

I have a matching piercing with an IFFR colleague, I won’t tell who it is…