The Playing Man (2018)

Directed by: Sanne Rovers | 27 minutes | documentary

What distinguishes adult humans from other animal species is that humans make time for play. Where children and young animals use play to learn, that disappears as soon as an animal is an adult. Mature people, on the other hand, continue to play. That fact forms the basis for the short documentary ‘De Speelde mens’.

The makers of this film follow people during various forms of play such as shuffleboard, larping, skydiving and “good-old” football. They do this in an observant manner; there are no interviews, voiceovers or testimonials. The camera registers and allows the viewer to draw their own conclusions. There is, however, a clear order in the structure of the story. It starts with preparatory actions, followed by the activity to conclude and discuss in a social circle: the obvious cycle of play.

The great thing about the sequence of telling is that the viewer is taken along in the rituals. First worrying whether everything works and setting frameworks by means of rules (for example, you can earn Easter eggs while shuffleboard and whoever has the most eggs wins). Then losing yourself in the activity, which is mounted in such a way that it also feels like the climax. And at the end the relief or frustration about the course of the game.

‘The playing man’ is also fascinating because of the chosen form. No clear message from the makers requires an interpretation from the viewers. What does it say about us as human beings that we can lose ourselves completely in a game of shuffleboard? Or that in a preliminary meeting an amateur football match is approached as the final of the Champions League. Or that graying men radiate happiness when they can make their motorized plane fly around on a crank? Everyone will formulate a different answer to those questions and that also seems to be the point of the makers. Not only the viewer’s opinion, but also the motivation of the ‘players’ is hyper-personal and as long as it is not expressed, it remains a guess as to why. And perhaps that ‘why’ is therefore also of secondary importance. The immersion in the game is the reason. Don’t worry about life’s questions for a while, just dress up as Orcs to imaginatively slaughter enemies.

‘The Playing Man’ is a fascinating, beautifully made short documentary that could be relevant as an anthropological observation for a long time. It is a deeper study of what concerns us as humans. And if that sounds too pompous, then the gentleman in his gangster-bling bling shirt alone on a nice night of shuffleboard is worth an observation.