Faces of Rotterdam: A Glimpse into Our 170+ Nationalities is a short documentary that offers an intimate and direct portrait of the people who shape Rotterdam today.
The film grew out of the long-running photography project by Robert Tjalondo, in which Rotterdam residents from an ever-growing number of nationalities are portrayed. In this cinematic translation, a selection of these residents speak for themselves. In a restrained setting — a neutral background, a microphone, and a direct gaze into the camera — they share, in their own words, their lives in Rotterdam, their backgrounds, and their relationship to the city.
By removing all distractions, the film creates a focused encounter between filmmaker, participant, and viewer. It allows individual voices to be heard without commentary or explanation, inviting attentive and open listening.
Faces of Rotterdam: A Glimpse into Our 170+ Nationalities had its world premiere in 2025 at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) as part of the Art Directions: Exhibitions programme.
The official IFFR page for the film can be found here:
The full film is shown exclusively during the travelling exhibition and at special screenings by invitation. On this website, only the official trailer is available as a first introduction to the project.
Watch the trailer on the official IFFR YouTube channel:
The project is still evolving. As new portraits and stories continue to be added, Faces of Rotterdam remains a living and changing portrait of the city — composed of many individual perspectives that together form the contemporary face of Rotterdam.
Film Details
Title
Faces of Rotterdam: A Glimpse into Our 170+ Nationalities
Country of production
Netherlands
Year
2025
Festival edition
International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) 2025
Premiere status
World premiere
Length
16 minutes
Languages
Dutch, English
Director & Cinematography
Robert Tjalondo
Editing
Bart Buerman
Music
Gorokhovskiy