Vincent Bal

'''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).

== 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.<ref>{{Cite web |date=May 10, 2021 |title=Pionier van Gentse jeugdtheater Eva Bal (82) overleden |url=https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20210510_92954788 |website=Nieuwsblad}}</ref> He studied film directing at the Hogeschool Sint-Lukas Brussel.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://artpeople.net/2016/11/vincent-bal-turns-shadows-illustrations/|title=Vincent Bal Turns Shadows To Illustrations|website=Art People|date=21 November 2016 |access-date=12 April 2021|language=nl}}</ref>

== Career ==

=== Film === In the third year of his film degree, Bal directed the short film {{Lang|nl|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 {{Lang|nl|Man Van Staal}} (Man of Steel), which won the International Jury Prize at the 2000 Berlin Kinderfilmfest.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Vincent Bal - BIO|url=https://www.vincentbal.com/bio/index.php|access-date=2021-04-09|website=www.vincentbal.com}}</ref> 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 * {{Lang|nl|Man van staal}} (1999): feature, director/writer * {{Lang|fr|Joli môme}} ''(1997): s''hort, director/co-writer * ''The Bloody Olive'' (1996): short, director/screenwriter * ''Tour de France'' (1994): short, director/writer * {{Lang|nl|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:<blockquote>"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."<ref>{{Cite web|last=feeldesain|date=2018-06-18|title=8 Questions With Vincent Bal aka Shadowology|url=https://www.feeldesain.com/vincent-bal-shadowlogy.html|access-date=2021-04-09|website=Feel Desain {{!}} your daily dose of creativity|language=it-IT}}</ref></blockquote>Bal is currently working on the Shadowology live-action film that incorporates his shadow drawings<ref>{{Cite web|date=2019-04-15|title=Artist Turns Shadows from Everyday Objects into a Cast of Playful Characters|url=https://mymodernmet.com/shadow-art-vincent-bal/|access-date=2021-04-09|website=My Modern Met|language=en}}</ref> and also has a published book of his illustrations by the same name.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bal|first=Vincent|title=Shadowology|date=2019|others=Birgit Erdmann, mixtvision Mediengesellschaft mbH|isbn=978-3-95854-143-6|location=München|oclc=1091370650}}</ref>

== Awards == Source:<ref>{{Cite web|title=Vincent Bal|url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0049294/awards|access-date=2021-04-09|website=IMDb}}</ref>

'''Algarve International Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |1998 |Grand Prize of the City of Portimão |The Bloody Olive (1997) |Nominated |} '''Berlin International Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |2000 |Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk Grand Prix |Man van staal (1999) ''Tied with Tsatsiki, Mum and the Policeman (1999)'' |Winner |} '''Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF)''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- | rowspan="2" |1998 |Audience Award for Best Short Film |The Bloody Olive (1997) |Winner |- |Canal+ Belgique Award |The Bloody Olive (1997) |Winner |} '''Chicago International Children's Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |2002 |Children's Jury Award |Minoes (2001) |Winner |} '''Children KinoFest''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |2014 |Grand Prize |Non, het Zigzag Kind (2012) |Nominated |} '''Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |1997 |Grand Prix |The Bloody Olive (1997) |Nominated |- |1995 |Canal+ Award |Tour de France (1995) |Winner |} '''Dresden Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |1997 |Youth Jury Award |The Bloody Olive (1997) |Winner |- |1995 |Best Short Film |Tour de France (1995) |Winner |} '''European Film Awards''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |2013 |Young Audience Award |Nono, het Zigzag Kind (2012) |Winner |} '''Magritte Awards''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |2016 |Magritte Award |Brabançonne (2014) |Nominated |} '''Molodist International Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |1997 |Best Film Award |The Bloody Olive (1997) |Nominated |} '''Montréal International Children's Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |2013 |Audience Award |Nono, het Zigzag Kind (2012) |Winner |} '''Oulu International Children's Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |2013 |Starboy Award |Nono, het Zigzag Kind (2012) |Nominated |- |2002 |Starboy Award |Minoes (2001) |Nominated |} '''Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- | rowspan="2" |2013 |Just Film Award - Special Mention |Nono, het Zigzag Kind (2020) |Winner |- |Just Film Award |Nono, het Zigzag Kind (2020) |Nominated |} '''Torino International Festival of Young Cinema''' {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Nomination Category !Film !Result |- |1995 |Prize of the City of Torino |Tour de France (1995) |Nominated |}

== References == <references/>

== External links == * [https://www.vincentbal.com/ Official Website] *{{IMDb name|0049294}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bal, Vincent}} Category:Living people Category:1971 births Category:Belgian filmmakers Category:21st-century Belgian illustrators Category:Artists from Ghent