The crematoria in Roosendaal and Bergen op Zoom have a special side job this summer. They are looking for fifty serious extras who want to attend a fake funeral for a photo report. “But you don’t really have to cry,” says director Annette van de Meene of the Zoom and Zegestede Crematoria and Cemeteries Foundation.
The crematoria want to show what the possibilities are for a last goodbye. It is of course not appropriate to use photos of real funerals. Van de Meene: “Most crematoria are therefore photographed as empty shells. We want to better visualize the experience and the feeling in a sad situation.”
There are no real requirements for the special photo report. “Young, old, fat, thin, large or small, we believe that everyone is suitable for having their picture taken in the crematoria. And it is also okay to laugh, because a condolence or an anecdote is often accompanied by a laugh and tear in real life.”
“We want to capture an extraordinary memory.”
And that takes a lot of people. “If you seat ten people in our auditoriums on the first bench, it still gives an empty feeling.” In addition to the call for dozens of extras, the funeral director has also hired professional photo models. “But it should by no means become a stylized picture with only models.”
“We receive 180,000 guests a year. We think it’s important that the photo shoot represents all those people,” explains the director. “Creating an unusual moment with ordinary people an extraordinary memory. We want to capture that.”
A coffin in the middle of the auditorium or carried on shoulders. Various scenarios have been written for the photo report, for which suitable extras are selected. For example, there is a ‘standard’ funeral for an older person where only the family is present. In addition, there is a setting with a younger deceased. Younger extras will soon also play a role in this.
“It’s a crematorium, not a day out.”
Participants should not count on breaking through as a fashion model. “Some people will not be recognizable or will appear somewhat vague in the background,” Van de Meene warns.
People who like to ‘re-enact’ the deceased must also be disappointed. The box remains empty. “The photos are taken with respect for the environment. It is and remains a crematorium and it is not a day out.”
The photo shoots in Roosendaal and Bergen op Zoom will take place in the week of August 22. Participants can get in the mood with a short tour. And as a thank you for their efforts, they are offered a snack and a drink. So they don’t have to do it for an old-fashioned slice of cake. “But that has not been standard on our menu for some time now,” says director Van de Meene with a smile.
Interested in the extra role can register via the email address [email protected] of Crematoria and Cemeteries Zoom and Zegestede Foundation. For all people who participate, an amount will go to two charities: KWF Kankerbestrijding and Lichtjes op Krijgsgraven.