I’m attracted to failure," says Matthijs Van Heijningen, who directs spots in the U.S. and Canada through bicoastal/international Morton Jankel Zander (MJZ). "People [in my spots] try something and fail, but come out strong anyway. I think there is some humanity and comedy in that."
Van Heijningen’s attitude toward failure comes out in his Peugeot’s "Sculptor," a humorous spot that was produced via Bandits, St. Cloud, France, out of Euro RSCG Mezzani Constantini Mignani, Milan, Italy, which won a Gold Lion at the 2003 Cannes International Advertising Festival, among other accolades. (In his native Holland, Van Heijningen works out of Bonkers, Amsterdam, a shop he co-founded; he is also affiliated with Outsider, London, and Irene/75, Paris, which reps him in France.)
Set in India, "Sculptor" follows a man who is inspired by a magazine image of a Peugeot 206 to transform his unremarkable car into the Peugeot. His low-tech methods include smashing up the auto by backing it into a wall, having an elephant sit on the hood, and taking a hammer to its already-battered body. Satisfied with his work, he and his buddies go for a ride in the humorously reconfigured car as they nod along to the spot’s Bollywood groove. Van Heijningen sees the spot’s sculptor as both failing and succeeding at the same time.
Fouling up also figures prominently in two other very funny commercials from Van Heijningen. In Centraal Beheer’s "Clowns, " out of Result/DDB, Amsterdam, a clueless cop ends up driving a suspect’s getaway car, while in Delta Lloyd’s "Parade," through TBWA/Campaign, Amsterdam, a hapless everyman oversleeps, causing a major gaffe in a spectacular ceremony honoring a dictator. The spot "100 People" for the United Nations highlights the director’s visual and dramatic abilities.
But the director’s latest job—and his first for MJZ—has a very different vibe from those ads. Van Heijningen describes Archipelago’s "Birds" and "Chess," which were shot in Buenos Aires, via Fallon, Minneapolis, as having an uncanny quality.
Archipelago, the world’s largest electronic stock exchange, deals with 64 million digital transactions a day. "Birds" and "Chess" try to make the point that when you deal with such huge numbers, you have to be able to control them. "Bird" depicts a young couple feeding birds in a park, while the people around them go about their business. More birds arrive. The invasion continues, and panic breaks out. As people scream and run about, the city becomes an aviary.
"Chess" shows two older men playing the game outdoors. At first, a few people stop to watch the match. Then, more and more people gather to watch this ordinary game. Soon people are stopping their cars, running out of their homes, and climbing up trees to see what’s up, until the whole city seems to be watching. "It’s the absurdity that slowly creeps in that makes these spots nice," notes Van Heijningen.
Van Heijningen met MJZ president/executive producer David Zander at Cannes last year, after the director won a Gold Lion. Zander inquired about Van Heijningen’s representation in the U.S., and it turned out that the director didn’t have a stateside rep. A few months later, Van Heijningen officially joined MJZ’s roster.
So far, Van Heijningen hasn’t noticed many differences between working in the stateside market and directing in Europe. "It’s sort of the same, to be honest," he says. "I probably can give you a better answer in six months or a year. I’m very curious if my sense of humor will blend with the American one—that’s the big question for me—but I think [it] will."
Currently, Van Heijningen is prepping two European jobs: a Renault commercial via Bonkers out of Publicis, Amsterdam, and a job out of Mother, London, for a drink called Oasis.
HOME SCHOOLed
Van Heijningen grew up in the world of film. His father, also named Matthijs Van Heijningen, is a well-known Dutch feature film producer (the upcoming Camera Obscura; Kees De Jongen). From the ages of 14 to 19, Van Heijningen worked on his father’s movies and also pursued an interest in still photography. At the age of 19, Van Heijningen was uncertain about what profession he should go into. He had an interest in film, but didn’t want to follow in his father’s footsteps. "So I studied law," he laughs. He pursued his legal studies for four years, but during that time, he made a number of short films.
Not surprisingly, working on his father’s projects provided Van Heijningen with valuable experience for making his own films. When Van Heijningen worked on his father’s movies, he did "everything—painting, art department, lights, editing assistant. That was a good school for me," he recalls. "When I started making little films, I knew everything already, except for directing."
Van Heijningen says he found it difficult to raise money for his short films, so he decided to go into spotmaking. Initially, he thought directing commercials would serve as a step toward a feature film career, but things turned out differently. "When I started doing commercials, I really liked them," he says.
He’s currently working on a feature script, but notes, "I’m not in a hurry. As long as the commercials are funny or have a little narrative, it’s fine. I really enjoy that."
