Ronald Bijlsma started his animation career in
1957 at the Dutch Toonder Studios. Five years later he moved to Cine
Cartoon Centre, founded by American director Jim Hiltz. There Bijlsma
made numerous animated commercials for television, among which the prize
winning "Caballero" (1965). His first independent short is
titled "Het Duel" (1967). He financed the film himself, and it
was shown as one of the very first autonomous films from the Netherlands
at the Annecy festival. After that Bijlsma made a second personal film,
"In the void" (1968), in which his love for painting can
clearly be seen. In the late 60's he started his own production company
and to improve the animation film climate in the Netherlands he founded
the Dutch Association for Animation Film in 1973, which later was to
become Holland Animation. Also in 1973 Bijlsma made his probably most
well known film: "Brainwash". It remained the guiding light
and model for emerging Dutch animation for many years. In the meantime
he kept making commissioned films for the state and the private sector
to earn a living. His public service announcements are especially funny
and effective. He also made illustrations for magazines and other
publications. In the late 80's he joined Top Drawers agency as a
producer-director. There he made several films, among which the
award-winning "Home of the future" for Philips, together with
friend and colleague Greg Lawson. In the 90's he decided to make another
independent film, and his source of inspiration for this film was the
early American cartoon. Koko the Clown and Betty Boop made their
re-entry in Bijlsma's "Back to the inkwell", which he
completed in 1992. In the last years of his life Bijlsma decided to slow
down the pace a bit and devoted himself passionately to painting.
When Ronald, who became a close personal friend of me, suddenly died in
September 2002, he left behind an enormous amount of animated
commercials, commissioned work like animated leaders and three
independent films that won several awards. Ronald's widow gave me much
of the artwork from his films, including storyboards, inspirational
drawings, colour model cels, thumbnail sketches, and production-drawings
and cels. On this page you will find a selection of that artwork.
I will miss Ronald dearly, as he was one of the nicest and most
inspiring persons I've known.
I hope you'll enjoy my website, and if you have anything to add or any
other comments, please e-mail me: hwalther@xs4all.nl
Hans Walther
All images © and TM of the respective studios.
You can click on the thumbnails to see
larger images.
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DE UITDAGING (The Challenge) (1990)
Original hand-inked and hand-painted production cel of Angela Groothuizen
from the title sequence of the TV-program on a (non-matching) production
background.
Director: Ronald Bijlsma.
Design & script: Ronald Bijlsma.
Animators: Tony Kluck, Sam Siahaija and Hans Richter.
Studio: Top Drawers.
Ronald Bijlsma was born in 1934 in Rotterdam where he studied at the
Academy of Visual Arts. In 1957 he went to work for Marten Toonder, where
he learned the art of animation in depth, and in 1961 joined the Cine
Cartoon Centre in Hilversum. In 1967 he set up his own production company,
called "Animated Films", and worked with the artists Allen Jones and Heinz Edelmann
(of "Yellow Submarine" fame) among others. Over the years he has
made numerous educational shorts on social and cultural topics for the
Dutch government. Commissions from Dutch companies and industries have led
to many animated cartoons for television which are often very amusing.
Bijlsma has made four independent films. "Duel" (1967) depicts
the complex relationship between man and woman. A series of gouaches,
painted directly under the camera, is the basis of "In the Void"
(1968), which represents the violence that is present in each individual.
"Brainwash" (1973) is a satire on people in power and
totalitarian systems which regard individual creativity as a threat and
want to control it by using manipulative techniques. "Back to the
Inkwell" (1992) shows a character from the early days of the American
cartoon, Koko the Clown, who creates his own modern figure, but soon loses
control over his creation.
This cel with production background is from the title-sequence of the
television program "De Uitdaging" (The Challenge), which I
directed from 1990-1992. Ronald Bijlsma gave me this cel personally in
1992. It was my first original production-cel.
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DE UITDAGING (The Challenge) (1990)
Original hand-inked and hand-painted multi-cel progression setup on a key
production pan-background: Angela Groothuizen closes a dike with the help of
other people.
From the title-sequence of the TV-program.
Director: Ronald Bijlsma.
Design & script: Ronald Bijlsma.
Animators: Tony Kluck, Sam Siahaija and Hans Richter.
Studio: Top Drawers.
In this piece you can clearly see how each cel is slightly different, and
thus creates movement.
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THE HOME OF THE FUTURE (1987)
Three-cel set up with key production background from this promotional film
for Philips, directed by Ronald Bijlsma and Greg Lawson. The idea that a
baby might be fed without parental intervening, is demonstrated by some bunnies with a bottle of formula, emanating from a
television tube.
The lower half of the background has faded considerably over the years (it
used to be a bright blue), as it hung in direct sunlight in directors Ronald
Bijlsma's office. This shows what damage sunlight can do to your precious
artwork...
Design & script: Greg Lawson.
Animators: Ronald Bijlsma, Wim Giesbers and Bill Karsten.
Music: Dick Bakker.
Produced by: Ronald Bijlsma for Top Drawers.
A present-day family, harassed by a lot of badly interrelated electronics in
their home, enters a life of fairy-tale adventure and unexpected
possibilities by being introduced to the world of Philips New Media Systems.
A public-relations film, commissioned by Phlips Home Interactive Systems.
3rd Prize - Film and TV Festival New York, 1988.
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SNEEUWWITJE (1994)
Hand-painted cel set-up with key production background from the commercial
for NOG Verzekeringen. Scene 1 - Nr.A60. Signed and
personalized by Ronald Bijlsma.
The seven Dwarfs return to their home after a long day of hard work, to find
Snow White dead.
This is actually the first shot of the commercial. The only thing missing is
the cel-level with the smoke coming out of the chimney. The picture of the
piece loses a great deal of the visual power of the actual artwork,
especially the background. Unfortunately all methods I've tried fail to
capture its essence. If you're ever in Holland, let me know and I'll show it
to you in person.
Director Ronald Bijlsma gave me this setup personally and signed it for me.
He also wrote on the cel: Voor Hans. Na lang, lang aandringen. Ronald. (Translation:
For Hans. After insisting for a long, long time. Ronald.)
As this is the only Dutch animated Snow White -and you know how I feel about
Snow White- I just HAD to have a cel from this very funny little film. (To be honest, in the meantime Paul Driessen has made his "Three Misses"
(1998), part of which also tells the story of Snow White, or rather: the
seven Dwarfs trying to rescue her. As this is Driessen's first film which is
scanned and coloured in the computer, no cels exist.)
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SNEEUWWITJE (1994)
Four cel set-up with production background from the commercial for NOG Verzekeringen. Scene 6 - Nr. 8. The background is from scene 4.
The Prince is about to bend down to kiss Snow White back to life, as the
seven little men are watching admiringly.
The only thing the Prince forgot, is that he has to overcome an unpleasant
obstacle. Just as he wants to kiss her, he bumps his head on the glass
coffin, which breaks. The fairytale storybook-page we see next, displays the
motto of the insurance company: Sometimes things go right, sometimes things
go wrong.....
In just 25 seconds one of the most important parts of Snow Whites story is
old in a very funny, unusual and effective way. The animation is done in
full Disney-style, and the backgrounds are beautifully executed.
This setup has four cel-levels: one with the seven Dwarfs, one with the
coffin holding Snow White, one with the Prince, and the final one with the
cape of the Prince. The cape still moves as the Prince kneels down before he
tries to kiss Snow White; that's why they put the cape on a different
cel-level.
The background is not key to the four cels, but belongs to the shot where
the Prince appears on his horse. Background and cels were given to me by
Ronald Bijlsma as a set, as very little material from this commercial survived.
(Yes, they still throw beautiful stuff like this in the trashcan...)
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SNEEUWWITJE (1994)
Hand-painted cel set-up with key production background from the commercial
for NOG Verzekeringen.
This is the final shot of the commercial, the ‘story book ending’...
with a twist.
The text says: “Sometimes things go right, sometimes things go
wrong”.
I also have the original layout drawing of this setup.
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SNEEUWWITJE (1994)
Cel of the Prince on his horse from a commercial for NOG Verzekeringen.
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SNEEUWWITJE
(1994)
Cel of several crying dwarfs from a commercial for NOG Verzekeringen.
I
also have the storyboard drawings and model sheets for this commercial.
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BACK TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
A character from the early days of American cartoons creates his own, modern
figure, but he soon loses control over his creation...
Script, design and direction: Ronald Bijlsma
Animation: Tony Kluck, Sam Siahaija and Hans Richter
Backgrounds: Ronald Bijlsma
Music: Jakob Klaasse
Voices: Greg Lawson
Produced by Nico Crama for the Holland Animation Foundation
Scene 2 - Nr. 48: Koko the Clown on a sheet of paper.
After his studies Ronald Bijlsma (1934) worked at the Toonder Studios and at
Cine Cartoon Center. Since he set up his own production company in 1967, he
has made numerous commissioned films. In addition, he is active as an
illustrator and painter. From 1986 to 1999 he was a producer-director for
Top Drawers Very Moving Pictures in Amsterdam. "Back to the Inkwell"
was Bijlsma's last independent film, and can be seen
as an ode to the classic cartoon.
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BACK TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
leischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
Scene 8 - Nr. 4: The little man is walking up a ladder.
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BACK TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
Scene 10C - Nr. 302: The little man is standing before a sculpture. The cel
of the 'hand'-sculpture is on a different cel-level, as this is obviously a
'held' cel.
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BACK TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max Fleischer's
"Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
Scene 16 - Nr. 165 & 196 and 'sea 1': The little man runs from Betty
Boop, who stands on a very small tropical island. This is really a 'multi'
cel setup; the man and Betty Boop are on seperate cel-levels, but also the
sea is on a different level. Five different sea-cels were made, so it would
appear to be moving water. The palmtree that Betty Boop is holding on to is
also on a cel, as she bends it.
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BACK TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
Scene 61 - Nr. A1: The little man looks from behind a tree. This is just one
of the nicest handpainted backgrounds I have in my entire collection.
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BACK TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
Scene 62 - Nr. A10 & C12: Koko's hand is invading the cartoon-setting.
The leaves on the left are on an overlay. How wonderful that just by seeing
a hand and an arm, you know it's Koko the Clown. Even Mickey Mouse wouldn't
get away with that! The four fingers (typical for almost all cartoon
characters) can also very clearly be seen.
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BACK
TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
Scene 13 - Nr. 140: The little man meets Koko the Clown.
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BACK TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
Scene 9 - Nr. 69: The little man has reached the top of the ladder.
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BACK
TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
Scene 53 - Nr. 119: The little man spray paints his own landscape.
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BACK
TO THE INKWELL (1992)
Key-setup from this independent short based upon Max
Fleischer's "Out of the Inkwell".
The characters Koko the Clown and Betty Boop appear with the permission of
the Fleischer Studios Inc.
The
little man meets Koko the Clown in front of the 'hand'-sculpture. The
background is a sea that moves, so there's no static background for this
scene. The sea was made out of five cels that were shown in a cycle, so that
it appeared to be moving.
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HET
DUEL (1967)
These two cels are from Ronald Bijlsma’s first independent short
film.
A suicide attempt is turned aside by the appearance of a woman and finally
they end in a bitter fight.
These
two cels show the two main characters, a man and a woman.
I think the choice of colours is very special.
The man and woman each had their own cel level, noted with an ‘M’ (for
‘man’) and ‘V’ (for ‘vrouw/woman’), and their own number. For
instance the
cel in which the man presents the flowers has the numbers V-30
and M-66.
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BRAINWASH
(1973)
Two key setups (scene 8 and 9) from Bijlsma’s most successful film.
Both are four cel setups with the original matching background.
The
film tells the story of two men who control the lives and thoughts of the
inhabitants of a whole town. To their annoyance they discover a happy
musician somewhere in town. He will have to be shaken down into society and
brainwashed like the rest. Instead, the musician brainwashes the dictators
with the idea of a world of fun and sunshine. They go into town, hoping to
share their happiness with the other people. It is too late; unmoved, the
people stare vacuously in front of them.
This
film was one of the first independent animated shorts I ever saw, and it
made a lasting impression on me. You can imagine how happy I am to have
these two setups.
A little restoration still has to be done do these pieces of artwork.
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CETABEVER
Key-setup from a Cetabever commercial.
Everything you see here is on the cel, but it’s on the original white
background.
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CETABEVER
Key-setup from a
Cetabever commercial.
This is a three cel setup on the original background. The background only
has the outline of the roof.
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VAN
HAREN SCHOENEN
Three key-setups from a Van Haren shoe commercial.
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Production
cel from a butter commercial for television.
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Two
cels made for a Heineken Uitmarkt event commercial.
I also have the matching drawings. It’s interesting to see how detailed
the drawings are, while the cels are painted with only four colours.
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POSTBANK
Production cel of the lion from a Postbank commercial.
This is probably the only surviving cel from this commercial. I just love
the design and the colour styling.
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TUC
Two production cels from a cookie Tuc commercial.
The character of the man isn’t painted, which probably means that the
background for this commercial was totally white.
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Key-setup
from an unknown film.
If this image rings a bell, maybe you can contact me to shed some light
onto this matter.
I especially like the rough quality of the ink line.
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