Listen (2017)

Directed by: Astrid Bussink | 15 minutes | documentary, short film

The Kindertelefoon is a well-known concept and once in a while gets the attention it deserves. Now that is the case with the short documentary ‘Listen’. In this film, various conversations are reconstructed in order to get an idea of ​​what they are doing at the Kindertelefoon. For example, there are conversations with a boy who at first seems to be an angry prepubescent girl, a girl who is home alone a lot or a boy from an asylum seekers’ center who is afraid for his future.

The short documentary immediately grabs your attention and holds it until the end (after fifteen minutes). The feeling of listening in on “real” conversations creates a form of intimacy. And that adds to the emotional investment you have to make as a viewer. The auditory design thus contributes to the persuasiveness.

The visual framing also helps to give the stories more impact. Each storyline has its own visual form and that means that, despite the fact that various storylines are interwoven, each story remains recognizable. As a viewer, it takes no effort at all to remember who is speaking. For example, with the angry boy there are anonymous images of a skateboarder and that gives that thread its own “look and feel”.

What impresses the most, however, are the stories themselves. Poignant, disarming and sometimes heartbreaking. For example, the boy from the asylum seekers’ center is always afraid that he will be taken away again and will have to move. In the cynical period in which ‘Listen’ is released, it is good to be forced to reflect on the human aspect. And these kids will take care of that. Within fifteen minutes you can completely change your (pre)judgment and that is well done by the director.

‘Listen’ is successful on several levels and, despite the short duration of the film, tells a nicely rounded and above all gripping story.