Een stukje blauw in de lucht

A piece of blue in the sky' highlights the black past of Sinti and Roma. Almost a million of these gypsies were gassed and murdered during the Second World War. Sinti and Roma do not like to talk about themselves and certainly not about difficult matters. It is therefore a special achievement of director Bob Entrop that he was able to speak to them so closely. Entrop has been with them for a long time. A piece of blue in the sky' is one of the three films he made with them.
　　In this film, gypsies talk about their direct or indirect experiences of war. For the first time in her life, a woman talks about her most humiliating experiences in the camp. She had to undress in front of a number of German officers. Nudity is a taboo subject, especially for Sinti and Roma. Another one was taken to Poland where he had to fight with the Germans against the Russians. Without hesitation he tells that he also shot people. While yet another one, Hannes, wants to admit to having murdered someone at some point, but doesn't want to talk about it. Anyway, it soon becomes clear that this group of people hasn't processed all the traumas they've suffered by a long chalk. Therefore, there was no (psychological) shelter for this population group after the war. Most of them still wake up with some regularity at night sweating from a nightmare.
　　The men and women who speak have often lost their entire family, they have lost their joy of life. Now, after all these years, most of them have a new family through children and grandchildren. But the grief of the war is there every day. As is said in the film: "A Sinti of Roma may seem cheerful on the outside, but inside he cries." And that's not surprising, because this group is still perceived as undesirable everywhere. So after the war they didn't get a new caravan and horses, they didn't get anything at all. And it was only after decades that their war suffering was recognised.
　　The visit to Auschwitz, where many gypsies were gassed, is impressive. And as one of the speakers explains: "It's so bad what happened there that you hardly believe it."
　　Entrop has produced a document that is of great cultural importance. His other two films 'Musicians for life' and 'A people without their own country' are about the same people. An enrichment to get to know them.
　　Miranda van der Hoek