Vincent Bal

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Vincent Bal (born 25 February 1971) is a Belgian filmmaker and visual artist widely known for his artwork based around shadows cast by everyday objects. As a writer and director he is best known for Miss Minoes (2001), The Zigzag Kid (2012), Belgian Rhapsody (2014), and The Bloody Olive (1997).

Contents

Early life and education

Bal was born on 25 February 1971 in Ghent, Belgium. His mother is Eva Bal, a Dutch theater director, pioneer in the youth theater domain. [1] He studied film directing at the Hogeschool Sint-Lukas Brussel. [2]

Career

Film

In the third year of his film degree, Bal directed the short film Aan Zee (1993), which was selected for several festivals. He graduated in 1994 with the short film Tour de France (1994) which won several awards, including the Canal+ Award at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival and Best Short Film at the Dresden Film Festival. After graduation, he directed The Bloody Olive (1997), a film noir spoof based on a comic book by Lewis Trondheim. In 1999, he directed Man Van Staal (Man of Steel), which won the International Jury Prize at the 2000 Berlin Kinderfilmfest. [3] In 2012 he directed The Zigzag Kid (also titled Nono, the Zigzag Kid), a family adventure film starring Thomas Simon (as the title character) and Isabella Rossellini. The film is based on the novel of the same name by David Grossman.

Filmography

  • Sea Shadow (2020): short, director/writer
  • Stranger (2017): documentary featurette, co-director
  • Belgian Rhapsody (2014): feature, director/co-writer
  • The Zigzag Kid (2012): feature, director/co-screenwriter
  • Kika & Bob (2007–2008, 2014): animated TV series, co-Creator/writer/director
  • Miss Minoes (2001): feature, director/co-screenwriter
  • Man van staal (1999): feature, director/writer
  • Joli môme(1997): short, director/co-writer
  • The Bloody Olive (1996): short, director/screenwriter
  • Tour de France (1994): short, director/writer
  • Aan zee (1993): short, director/writer

Illustration

Bal is known for his shadow art illustrations, made by combining shadows cast from everyday objects with hand-drawn doodles. He began his ongoing "Shadowology" series in 2016 when he challenged himself to make a shadow doodle every day. On where the inspiration for the series came from, Bal says:

"Like all good things in life, it came by accident. I was working on a film script (for a film that is never made) when I noticed how the shadow of my teacup looked a bit like an elephant. I gave the shadow animal eyes and a smile, and took a picture. When I shared it on social media, the reactions were really nice, so I decided to try and make one every day. That was may 2016 and I haven't stopped since." [4]

Bal is currently working on the Shadowology live-action film that incorporates his shadow drawings [5] and also has a published book of his illustrations by the same name. [6]

Awards [7]

Algarve International Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
1998Grand Prize of the City of PortimãoThe Bloody Olive (1997)Nominated

Berlin International Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
2000Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk Grand PrixMan van staal (1999)

Tied with Tsatsiki, Mum and the Policeman (1999)

Winner

Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF)

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
1998Audience Award for Best Short FilmThe Bloody Olive (1997)Winner
Canal+ Belgique AwardThe Bloody Olive (1997)Winner

Chicago International Children's Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
2002Children's Jury AwardMinoes (2001)Winner

Children KinoFest

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
2014Grand PrizeNon, het Zigzag Kind (2012)Nominated

Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
1997Grand PrixThe Bloody Olive (1997)Nominated
1995Canal+ AwardTour de France (1995)Winner

Dresden Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
1997Youth Jury AwardThe Bloody Olive (1997)Winner
1995Best Short FilmTour de France (1995)Winner

European Film Awards

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
2013Young Audience AwardNono, het Zigzag Kind (2012)Winner

Magritte Awards

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
2016Magritte AwardBrabançonne (2014)Nominated

Molodist International Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
1997Best Film AwardThe Bloody Olive (1997)Nominated

Montréal International Children's Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
2013Audience AwardNono, het Zigzag Kind (2012)Winner

Oulu International Children's Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
2013Starboy AwardNono, het Zigzag Kind (2012)Nominated
2002Starboy AwardMinoes (2001)Nominated

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
2013Just Film Award - Special MentionNono, het Zigzag Kind (2020)Winner
Just Film AwardNono, het Zigzag Kind (2020)Nominated

Torino International Festival of Young Cinema

YearNomination CategoryFilmResult
1995Prize of the City of TorinoTour de France (1995)Nominated

References

  1. ↑ "Pionier van Gentse jeugdtheater Eva Bal (82) overleden". Nieuwsblad . 10 May 2021.
  2. ↑ "Vincent Bal Turns Shadows To Illustrations". Art People (in Dutch). 21 November 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  3. ↑ "Vincent Bal - BIO". www.vincentbal.com. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  4. ↑ feeldesain (18 June 2018). "8 Questions With Vincent Bal aka Shadowology". Feel Desain | your daily dose of creativity (in Italian). Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  5. ↑ "Artist Turns Shadows from Everyday Objects into a Cast of Playful Characters". My Modern Met. 15 April 2019. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  6. ↑ Bal, Vincent (2019). Shadowology. Birgit Erdmann, mixtvision Mediengesellschaft mbH. München. ISBN   978-3-95854-143-6. OCLC   1091370650.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ↑ "Vincent Bal". IMDb. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
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