Community Spirit, July 2018

Richard: “So what was one of the
Michael: “I think it was our ability to get
Richard: “And they also did it in
Michael: “Yes! So I was a bit
2 6 | X C L U S I V E
Richard: “Someone said to me
Michael: “You never know what the
I N T E R V I E W
“I think that inspired people to lookout
“So when it went deeper it became
‘I never expected to tell you this
story because I never told this
interesting for people watching it,
more for their neighbours who were in
story to anybody! Not even to my
need or lonely people, or whatever. So it
but also for us. I always felt that
was just about communicating and
daughter or son!’
when it moved me or touched me, or
I was inspired, then I knew that
talking with each other! So that was one
of our aims, but the Dutch are quite
other people be inspired too. It
open in any case. The problem these
front of a film crew!”
always had to bring you something, a
days is that you see everyone on the
laugh or a strong emotion.”
streets glued to their mobile phones, but
not connecting with the people around
jealous of the camera crew, but
recently that Man Bites Dog, was
them in the moment. And our show was
they would come back with great
almost responsible for shifting
results. You learn a lot about
all about being in the moment.”
people’s perspective of themselves
people and we always wanted to
go deeper than what you saw on
or society in general in Holland…”
the surface. It always started with
successes of the programme?”
‘What did you do today?’ … but it
always ended with a life story.”
effect will be when you start such a
people to open up and talk about
programme. It evolved, the more
Just to be curious and give
themselves.
of yourself and then you get
something
back.”
something
“So because you were one of
Richard:
Editors-in-Chief and ‘the Voice’ of
the
programme for 16 years, how did
the
affect your life?"
that
“It affected me in a very
Michael:
way and as a team, we were a
positive
of family. We talked every day how
kind
could improve things and what was
we
about in society and how we could
going
our own comment on that. I
make
a lot of editing because I never
watched
went with the camera crew to
actually
people. We were always looking for
the
items and I looked at the results. It
new
moved me to see that we were
really
"...we realised
that this was
very important
to people and
it was more
than just a
programme. So
there was a
kind of
community
feeling."
more that we got into contact
and
people and the more feedback
with
got, we realised that it meant
we
to people than we could have
more
imagined!”
ever
also had a 'Man Bites Dog'
“We
on the internet, so we
community
events and people could
organised
together and because that was
gather
successful we realised that this
very
very important to people and it
was
more than just a programme. So
was
was a kind of community
there
feeling.”
was a magazine, it was intense
“It
it went fast. People learned a lot
and
who we really are and how we
about
in just 25 minutes each day
function
capable of opening up people because a
of the week.”
lot of times people would say afterwards