MEMBER IN THE SPOTLIGHT: JORIS WILLEMSEN & NIELS VAN DE SPIJKER

This week, we shine the spotlight on the dynamic duo of creativity at Bigfish Animation Agency: Joris Willemsen and Niels van de Spijker, the art directors who keep the agency's vision soaring to incredible heights.

Joris, an autodidact motion designer, holds a BBA in international media entertainment management. His expertise in motion graphics and VFX was honed during his days running his video production company WANAH media with two friends. After freelancing for several years, Joris joined Bigfish Animation as an Animator growing in seniority and onto Art Director. He has been flexing his creative muscles there ever since.

With a background in Illustration, Niels graduated from the art academy AKV St. Joost a decade ago as a graphic designer. After five years of working for various companies in the field, he found his true calling at Bigfish, where he started as a motion designer. His passion for animation and his sharp eye for design quickly catapulted him to the position of Art Director and the rest is history.

As they launch their brand new website, we catch up with the two sides of the agency’s creative coin, to talk about favorite apps, balance, the power of self-initiated study, and the future of Bigfish. And, of course, we couldn't resist the opportunity to share some seriously cute baby photos.

First things first ... In the name of creativity please draw a self-portrait.

What kind of creative pursuits did you both follow as a child?

Niels: As a child, I was constantly drawing. I read a lot of comic books and also wanted to be a cartoonist. Later when we got our first computer my interest developed to digital creation and the possibilities it offers.

Joris: In our family, it is kind of obligatory to have a basic musical education. So my creative But it was electronic music that really was a creative outlet when I was young. We had a little studio at home, where I could tinker with old-school tape recorders and my first 8-bit computer. A little later I started playing around with turntables. I still have a DJ booth in my living room to this day. So my introduction to creativity started with music before film

Image: Joris' and NIEls' first creative outlets.

What do you do outside of work that gets your creative juices flowing

Joris: In the early years, I spent thousands of hours online watching tutorials and learning new software. I loved to discover all the new possibilities. I still love that, but now I also seek time away from the screen to recharge my batteries. The balance between screen time and outdoor time is very important to me. It keeps me fresh and makes sure my creative juices keep flowing for the foreseeable future.

Niels: I follow many other motion designers via Instagram that inspire me. And like Joris, I am constantly following tutorials on youtube, skillshare, or motion design school. In my downtime, I make short animations to try out new techniques and styles and push myself creatively. But outside of animation and motion graphics, music and festivals really give me my creative energy.

ViDEO: Niels’ after-hour animations, Beatles

What current software, website, or app could you not do without?

Niels: Adobe After Effects without a doubt. This is the software a teacher introduced me to in 2010 and I've been hooked ever since. What I love about the software is that there is still so much to discover and learn about it. The possibilities are endless.

Joris: My favorite web app is Runway. At the moment AI is really booming, but at Bigfish, we already began implementing AI in our production pipeline in 2021. Runway keeps adding functionality and models, but what go us excited in the first place - and something we still use on a weekly basis - is the green screen function, which is a rotoscoping model. I have rotoscoped a lot in my career. It is such a painstaking process and takes a tremendous amount of time. Runway does this all in seconds.

Image: Runway ML's new tool can create green screen-like effects with AI.

Current art/design crush?

Joris: I came into animation and VFX from a film background. Learning motion graphics back in 2005, there is one man that has educated and inspired thousands of people who are now professionals in the media industry. That man is Andrew Kramer, from videocopilot.net. He is not really a designer or artist in the traditional sense but he is a MASTER in using technical tools in an unconventional, but really creative way so you get an incredible creative end result.

What music will we find on your playlist?

Niels: It varies a lot: from house, dubstep & future bass to soul, hip-hop & indie. As long as the music appeals to me I listen to it. The genre is not really important. Some artists that I love are Flume, Jamie xx, Maribou State, Kaytranada.

Joris: Currently on running on repeat in my Spotify is Hraach – Lost in my mind.

Describe what you both do as BigFish Art Directors.

Niels: As Art Directors, everything that is produced at BigFish goes through either myself or Joris before it is sent to the client. We make sure that the quality and creativity of every project are optimal. In a production, even the smallest details are important to delivering a good professional final product. We take care of the creative part; think of the development of the concept, create the mood board and visual style, and together with one of our illustrators or animators, we produce the storyboard and animation.

Joris: Fundamentally, we are the leads in concept creation and guardians of the concept throughout the whole production process.

Each project gets assigned to an Art Director, depending on the specific area of expertise the project requires. I have a background in the combination of film and motion graphics, or what we call 'hybrid film,' and Niels in Illustration, so on certain projects our backgrounds might be a better fit. We select the designers and animators we deem best for the specific job and guide them throughout the process until the end product is to our standards and gets delivered.

Image: Art Directors at work

Which phase of the creative process excites you the most and why?

Niels: I really find the concept phase the most exciting and fun. We always do this in a creative session together with the client. We then go through a number of mood boards together and determine a direction. Once a visual direction is determined that fits the client's needs and desires, we work it out in a style frame. A style frame is a still view of the end result. This part is often the most fun and requires a lot of creativity.

What professional skill have you gained that you use the most?

Joris: The art of letting go and resource management. It is easy to become too attached to concepts or projects. I have learned to pick the best people available for the job and give them the freedom to excel in their field of expertise without controlling every step in their creative process. During the process, I make corrections of course, but the end result is a team effort and not the product of an individual. A good example of this synergy is a recent project we did for Rinkel. From 2D sketches and artwork to 3D renders and sound design. This was truly a team effort with a great result.

Project link; Rinkel - Bigfish Animation

Out of the campaigns/projects you've worked on, which makes you the proudest?

Niels: I'm most proud of the animation we developed for Yes We Can Clinics. This is a progressive youth clinic. They have developed an app that allows young people to stay in touch with each other after their treatment. The animation was developed to promote this app. What was very special is that beforehand I walked along in the clinic for a day. This made a big impression on me and gave me a lot of inspiration for the execution and guidance of the project.

Video: Yes We Can - Big Fish Animation

In your careers, what have been your boldest moves?

Joris: Obviously, it’s saying yes to projects for dozens of clients while still having to figure out how to do them 😊. But besides that my boldest move…

I was freelancing as a motion designer and VFX artist and had already worked for the film division of Bigfish a few times. When another project request came my way from them, I sent an email back saying, “it seems like you need my expertise on a regular basis. You should consider hiring me full-time.” …I am now at Bigfish for 7 years.

Niels: Making the switch from graphic designer to animator. I graduated as a graphic designer and to make a career switch after 4 years was exciting. Animation is something I taught myself in my spare time and is not the study I graduated with. This put me in a vulnerable position because you don't know if you have enough knowledge of the craft. In hindsight, it was the best move I could have made because now I am really pursuing my passion.

What advice would you give to aspiring animators and creatives?

Niels: Do a lot of work. And don't worry if at first what you produce does not meet up to your imagination. Doing a lot of work is the only way to close the gap between you and your ambition.

Finally, what's up next? What are you most excited by for the near future?

Joris: Bigfish as a creative company is expanding rapidly. We have more and more areas of expertise in-house, which makes the projects we can work on bigger and more diverse. What I am really excited about is the imminent launch of Bigfish Film. A separate Bigfish entity that packs all our combined experience with film in one production company with overlap to our animation agency. The combination of Bigfish animation and Bigfish film makes a unique production environment where we can visualize pretty much every story in any style.

Check out the new shine to BigFish Animation Agency and more work from the team at BigFish.