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Reed Hastings just made a bold claim: That Netflix is the “biggest builder of cross-European culture.”

Speaking at Netflix’s European headquarters in Amsterdam today, the streamer’s founder and Executive Chairman said an “unexpected” outcome of pushing into European originals was how series and films from one country had performed in others.

“The amazing thing has been [seeing] how many Germans or Italians watch Spanish series,” he said. “We didn’t set out to do that, but we’ve become biggest builder of cross-European culture in the EU. It’s partially because all the other networks are national networks who specialize in one language group. We specialize in connecting.”

He quipped it was “ironic it’s a U.S. company” that achieved that level of soft power. “Or a U.S. company that’s now a Dutch company,” he added.

Netflix has been deep in discussions with the EU over...

Executive chairman was talking at panel at streamer’s Emea HQ in Amsterdam

Netflix executive chairman Reed Hastings has talked up the streamer as the “biggest builder” of cross European cultural connectivity in the European Union.

Hastings was speaking at a Netflix event for European policy experts, press and politicians held at the company’s Emea HQ in Amsterdam, where he shared the stage with co-ceo Greg Peters.

Asked about the most unexpected result of Netflix’s creative push into the Emea region, Hastings said: “The amazing thing has been how many Germans watch Spanish series, how many Italians watch Spanish series.

Netflix is looking to tell authentic stories from various countries now that hit programming doesn’t need to come out of Hollywood alone anymore, Larry Tanz, vp, Europe, Middle East and Africa (Emea) content at the global streaming giant, said on Monday.

“Great stories really can come from anywhere,” the executive shared during an event for reporters and Netflix partners and stakeholders at the streamer’s European headquarters in Amsterdam. Until a few years ago, “to have something … successful creators felt like it had to be in English and had to go to Hollywood and sell it there,” Tanz said. The widely held thought was that “that was the only way,” he continued. “Everything has changed just in the last five years or so where you can film a series in Spain and get it made in Spain with our team in Madrid. And it is a global phenomenon. And...

It would appear that the Dutch have a Tyler Perry to call their own in the form of Jandino Asporaat. The writer-comedian takes on multiple roles in upcoming comedy Bon Bini Holland in which a young man from Curacao (Asporaat) lands himself in serious debt and has to flee to Holland, where he is taken in by his aunt (Asporaat) and lands himself a job working in a fried chicken shop (managed by Asporaat).Like Perry's work, the comedy here is of the broadest possible variety so mileage is going to vary significantly between viewers. Take a look at the trailer below....

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