<i>“It's the duty of a state to support the film industry” -- Peter Van Bueren</i>

Dutch film critic Peter Van Bueren is in Dhaka to participate at the 10th Dhaka International Film Festival. The seasoned film critic is one of the five jury members of the Australasian Competition section of the festival. Moreover, he read the keynote paper at the seminar titled Aesthetics of Cinema: Critic and reviewer held yesterday at Central Public Library.
After his graduation in Political and Social Science, Peter Van Bueren began journalism while he was a student in the 1960s. His fascination with movies made him a renowned film critic in Europe. For the last four decades he has been covering all the popular film festivals in Europe such as the Cannes, Berlinale and Venice. At present he is teaching Film Criticism at the Amsterdam Film Academy and is writing film reviews for a Dutch magazine titled Skrien.
On his progression of becoming a film critic, Van Bueren said, “Watching movies, reading books and talking to people related to the film industry, have helped in enriching my ideas. Writing continually has honed my skills as a film critic. I believe this should be the ideal practice of any aspiring film critic.”
Commenting on the Dhaka International Film Festival Van Bueren said, “As Hollywood movies dominate the world, we don't often get the chance to watch movies made in other countries. These international film festivals give movie enthusiasts the opportunity to watch movies made by directors from different countries of the world, which also provides an opportunity to exchange views.”
The seasoned film critic also believes that each and every country of the world should be supportive of its film industry, otherwise the diversity of global culture would cease to exist. According to Van Bueren, “A state must play an active role in nurturing and promoting its distinct culture in the context of finance capitalism, where Hollywood movies dominate over 80 percent of world cinema. It is the duty of a state to support the local film industry.”
On the nature of possible support from the government or state level, Van Bueren said, “The Government should offer funds and at the same time take necessary steps to ensure that films made by talented directors are screened at home and aboard.”
Moreover, Peter Van Bueren believes that government should never impose censorship. He said, “Censorship is a major obstacle in nurturing talents.”