Frans Hofmeester has a lot of cool stuff on his Vimeo page, but nothing else quite captures the way it feels to be a parent the way this video of his beautiful daughter, Lotte, does.
Hofmeester shot footage of his daughter every week of her life, from infancy to 12 years old. It is breathtaking to behold the way a tiny little baby changes right in front of her father’s eyes.
We emailed Frans to ask him to explain what he did, and this is what he said:
Lotte is a Dutch girl born on 28-10-1999.I filmed Lotte every week. She was changing at such a rapid pace, that I felt the need to document the way she looked, to keep my memories intact. Other people might make a photo book, but I decided to film. The baby blanket, the white background, was a constant factor.
Vince was born when Lotte was three. Of course I started to film him too. Sometimes they did not feel like it.
Then I said ‘Just one minute. Tell me about your ball game, did you win?’ That way I stalled them so I could complete the shot.
I’ve also made an extended version, about 30 minutes. It would be great if that version could be displayed in a gallery or a museum. This would give people the opportunity to watch Lotte’s development without haste, and hear her chatting about her experiences and what she’s been up to in a given week.
I always had the feeling that this project was special, that it deserves a wider audience. But I never dreamt that it would get this kind of exposure.
I’m flabbergasted. For a proud father this is overwhelming.
CNN phoned, even the Japanese television contacted me.
Vince’s film has received less views, but he enjoys the attention. Lotte is more apprehensive, she’s like ‘what is happening to me?’. I discuss every step with them. Without their support I would not display the films. Why I chose to do it now? Neither Lotte nor Vince is fully grown. But I thought this was a good time: Lotte is entering puberty. She’ll be changing a lot over the coming years, but primarily on the inside.
Don’t like ads? Become a supporter and enjoy The Good Men Project ad freeI thought the first year of secondary school was a good demarcation. And of course I will continue filming!
Watch Frans’ son Vince grow and change at the same rate, into a handsome and bright-eyed 9 year old.
What do you think, dads? Did Hofmeester effectively capture the mind-boggling speed with which children change?
lovely – what a nice idea…so much character in her…. we must all have been like that once ;o)
I love both of these videos equally – what a great idea. I think I am drawn more to Vince’s cheeky energy, and I would love to see how this develops further in clips of the future. I do hope both children will participate, and yes completely agree that being able to hear what they are saying over the years, their understanding of themselves and their worlds will be fascinating.
Excellent, hopefully it will continue through the years. 12 years is so inspiring, can barely imagine what becoming an adult or capturing a lifetime would be like.
pretty cool. Thanks for sharing the growing process of children.
These are amazing. I really hope your children continue to let you film them right through to adults.