Why you want to see the documentary by Fred van Leer

Videoland is doing well. One documentary after another is being released and we can now speak of a trend: short episodes that zoom in on the lives of famous Dutch people. We see it with Monica, with Bizzey, with Boef and now also with Fred. I have checked them all, but there is actually only one that has really made me think and that is Fred's.

I am just seriously a bit speechless. For those who think that Fred is only about the ‘roekoe roekoe’ and the ‘hup huuuup’: no, he’s not. Fred is the perfect example of an introvert who presents himself outwardly as an extrovert. He wants so much that he sometimes loses himself. Secretly, he loves working hard because the feeling of being accepted, loved, and seen is something he misses in his life.

Fred is a typical entertainer. He laughs when people laugh, but in the meantime, he is becoming increasingly sensitive to depression. He is a man with extreme highs but also with lows. It is characteristic to ask whether he is happy with his life. ‘Yes, I think so. I think. What I do I really enjoy.’ Then he is abit silent. ‘Maybe I don’t know what happiness really is.’

Success is an addiction and Fred struggles with it. He expresses this in such a sincere way that it can't help but touch you as a viewer. If you have time this weekend: check out the documentary. Fred, we don’t know each other, but I think you are a beautiful person. Really.

Image credits: Nick van Ormondt & Gregor Servais