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de Oostplas - a piece of nature captured between Goirle and Tilburg (2011) - documentary 'de Oostplas' is a short documentary about an area just south of the A58 motorway, more or less the separation between the municipalities of Tilburg and Goirle. It is a sand quarry of about a kilometre wide, excavated for the purpose of that motorway. The Oostplas has many names: the put van Heel, the put van Casteren, the Nieuwe Ruischvoorn and the Hoge Wal. The first two are the names of the companies that excavated the lake. The Oostplas is a place where many holidaymakers come. It even has a (sometimes tolerated) nudist beach. There is a lot of fishing and diving. On the west side, the residential area 'de Hoge Wal' (municipality of Goirle) borders. The lake is bordered on the south and east sides by the meandering river Leye. To the south lies a small reserve, the 'Abcoven reserve' and a special piece of marshy forest: an alder swamp forest. It is only a few football fields in size, but is home to a remarkably large number of animals, such as buzzards, woodpeckers, polecats, hares and deer. In the summer many butterflies and insects, but also a large population of meadow damselflies. The reserve is limited on the south side by a piece of arable land and then the Beekse Bergen. It is caught between two municipalities and cannot go anywhere. I visited this area for about two months, several times a week, in early spring. I was fascinated by the power of nature, which manages to maintain itself in such a limited piece of land and under so many obstacles. Film and editing: Martijn de Boer http://www.martijndeboer.com Music: Charles Koechlin With thanks to: Municipality of Goirle Municipality of Tilburg Municipal Archives Tilburg Water Board de Dommel City Museum Tilburg State Forestry Service Heemkundekring Goirle Cubra.nl