More and more often you get a sticker on the camera of your phone when you go out. Some clubs go even further: you are not allowed to use your mobile at all. The trend is mainly related to privacy and security, say entrepreneurs. Although, according to them, it is also simply ‘better for the atmosphere’. “Some people don’t want to be on the internet all of a sudden.”
Camera stickers are used at nightclubs Radion, De School, Lofi and Garage Noord, among others. “You’re in the nightlife to escape normal life,” says manager of Garage North, Mike van Dijk. “You may dress and behave differently. You have to be able to do that in safety.”
reality check
According to Van Dijk, a taped camera also means that people automatically take out their mobile less often on the dance floor. That’s nice, according to him, because a flash of a photo and the bright light of a telephone screen do not improve the atmosphere. According to him, it is distracting if someone is checking their email or apps next to you. “Sometimes you want to be able to lose yourself in another world, but a phone can’t reality check because you are in constant contact with everyone.”
At the Shelter in Noord you are not allowed to use your phone on the dance floor at all since December, just like at De Trut in West, a queer disco. The Trut is ahead of the trend. For almost 39 years, since the establishment, no cameras are allowed inside.
And since there are mobile phones, they are not allowed to be used here. “We want everyone to be themselves. Not everyone who comes out has come out, or cannot show their identity on social media for another reason,” says Roos Bakker Schut. “In addition, it is also just uncomfortable to be busy with the outside world when you are at a party.”
Different audience
At Kanaal40, a club in the center, you are allowed to take photos and videos. It is striking that the club is owned by the same owners as Garage Noord, where you are not allowed to use a camera. According to one of those owners, Bram Owusu, this is mainly due to a difference in audience. “We close here earlier and play different music, more pop music,” says Owusu. According to him, a different audience will come to it. “A slightly younger audience, who are sometimes also a little less specific.”
Colleague Mick van Dijk completes Owusu. “At Garage Noord, more is coming ravy and diverse audience, dancing until the early morning. They don’t want to be afraid of being thrown somewhere on a video and on social media.”