Andreas Nilsson: Under Your Skin

In just three years, Andreas Nilsson has established himself as part of the fabric of adland with a bevy of unrivalled spots, becoming one of the most sought-after directors around. Simon Wakelin talks trucks, tears and a change of scene

Enter Andreas Nilsson. A classically trained painter and sculptor, Nilsson creates elaborate work that is unmistakably beautiful, perplexing and deliciously obscure. Yet it was not so long ago that Nilsson was rocking out as a member of Swedish band Silverbullit – a synth-infused rock outfit that released three albums and went on tour across America – before the director’s chair beckoned.

“I loved the creative process of recording albums, but was never a big fan of being in a band,” admits Nilsson on the experience of playing guitar in the group. “But that led me to [Swedish electronica band] The Knife and really set me on my path.”

Live experiments

Nilsson joined forces with The Knife for many years, directing music videos for the group as well as set designing on tour. Interestingly, The Knife did not initially play live shows, instead discovering new ways to entertain fans by breaking away from musical conventions.

“We developed a live concept where the artist on stage was completely replaceable,” explains Nilsson. “At the time, very few musicians experimented with the live format, and music shows were so conventional that we decided to push the boundaries of what could be considered a live show. Taking a video-art installation and placing it on stage turned the focus away from the performers on stage. The crowd was basically watching a pre-recorded and tweaked idea of what live music could be.”

Nilsson’s use of the frame as an arena is not so unusual when one realises his extensive background as an artist, painting and animating on projects for musical acts such as Goldfrapp, Jenny Wilson and Jose Gonzalez. “Back then, I treated all my work like personal art projects,” he recalls. “I’d paint in the morning and animate in the afternoon while the paint was still drying. When you are working like this you are operating on intuition alone, and it was a seamless relationship between what happened on the canvas and on the timeline. But as much as I loved it I knew that I needed to collaborate with people to develop as an artist.”

A stint as set designer at Sweden’s prestigious Royal Dramatic Theatre came next for Nilsson. That, in turn, led to further music video work for the likes of Depeche Mode, Moby and Röyksopp. Since then some classic Nilsson fare has entered our consciousness, including the unforgettably surrealistic take on Jamaican life in Rabbit for Miike Snow, an astoundingly hypnotic example of Nilsson’s richly textured palette in a tale full of irreverent visuals and gyrating dance moves.

Peeling back the layers

Nilsson’s painterly technique and attention to detail is also seen in other promos including Birthday Song for 2 Chainz & Kanye West, and Going Crazy for Dizzee Rascal. “I was obsessed with layers for a very long time,” explains Nilsson, on his richly orchestrated visuals. “I wasn’t happy unless there was a dozen layers in each shot, but lately I have moved away from this saturated world towards a more distilled and minimalistic language. This step is probably a consequence of the commercial work I’ve done.”

Asked if he’s ever used film, Nilsson says that he has only one experience with celluloid. “I never shoot with film,” he says. “I’ve done just one thing on film, but it was interesting because we only had 30- minutes worth of film for a video I was shooting, so after a few takes we had to stop. However, I liked the pressure that came from that. But you can adapt that pressure when shooting digital. I prefer to treat digital like film and not run around and spray with the camera.”

While Nilsson was creating progressive promos for some time, he explains that his transition to advertising was a tad tricky: “It was annoying to hear people say, ‘yeah, nice videos Andreas, but can you tell a story in 30 seconds?’ I’d always feel like, fuck, I can tell a story in four minutes – isn’t that even harder? But now I understand that comment better after making quite a few commercials. It’s all about being proficient in the storytelling. I see commercials like visual haikus.”

Proficiency – and the aforementioned move to visual minimalism – is best exemplified in Nilsson’s hugely popular Epic Split for Volvo Trucks through Forsman & Bodenfors, in which Jean-Claude Van Damme performs the splits atop two Volvo trucks traveling backwards. “The shot in the commercial was nailed between 6am and 6.05am,” reveals Nilsson. “We did one run before that, the second being the shot we needed with the sunrise behind Jean-Claude.”

Nilsson gives major props to producer Joi Persson at Folke Film and the drivers on the job, real employees from Volvo hired for the shoot. “They were fantastic, the big heroes for sure,” he explains. “They were not stunt precision drivers at all, just regular truck drivers whose job is to take cargo across Europe for Volvo.”

Truckers moved to tears

With more than 72 million views online so far, the work has gained widespread appeal, as well as providing us with goofy spoofs featuring the likes of Chuck Norris and Channing Tatum mimicking the spot. All this activity and the breathtaking stunt has amounted to an estimated media value of €120m for Volvo. Not bad at all.

“Everyone on that job had to perform 100 per cent because it wasn’t fake,” continues Nilsson. “Everything was caught on camera. I cut the spot together on set and placed the Enya track on top to show it to the drivers. One of them cried, overwhelmed with emotion after achieving the stunt. So far, that’s the most beautiful moment on set in my career. He was under immense pressure to perform – but the drivers prepared well and nailed it beautifully.”

Nilsson selected Enya’s Only Time during pre-viz to share the music’s tone as early as possible with client and agency, but it wasn’t until it was used on set that the music proved to be the right choice. “I had it in mind along with the whole camera move because it seemed so big, so relatable and emotional,” he explains. “The only thing I was concerned about was its possible kitsch factor because it had to feel 100 per cent honest.”

After the client saw the music laid down with breathtaking visuals it was clear the track was golden. “I must hand it to the client because they were great – they recognised the value of the song and paid for it,” says Nilsson. “They trusted it, believed in it and it really paid off in the end. Jean-Claude also comes on board with a fantastic backstory of his own, somehow surviving and balancing his way through life after the challenges of becoming a huge Hollywood action star.”

While Epic Split exemplifies Nilsson’s sublime, minimalist slant as a director, his knack for absurdist comedy also continues to entertain. It’s always a difficult sub-genre to master, yet Nilsson slides into quirky with astonishing ease, dramatising obscure moments with aplomb. This can be seen in The Dentist for ecommerce site Valmano through Scholz & Friends, where a random visit to the dentist becomes a smooth and savvy experience after the appearance of Senor Valmano, on hand to ease the patient’s pain with a bevy of free gifts – impeccable casting and pitch-perfect comedy that astonishes as much as it amuses.

Musical clues to Sweden’s talent

Questioned on why Sweden produces such a wide array of talented directors, Nilsson has no answers – but does posit one thought. “Maybe the mandatory requirement to learn to play an instrument at school gave us access to creativity. My years of torturing a violin might be the reason why I grew to love noise, music and visual chaos,” he offers.

Heading back to Sweden to wrap a new spot for NetonNet (Sweden’s answer to Amazon) featuring The Backstreet Boys, Nilsson explains that Stockholm is perfectly cut for commercials – a multicultural and diverse cityscape with more than one million people constantly plugged in. It’s also the reason why Nilsson prefers to reside in the quieter, more relaxed surroundings of Malmö, Sweden’s third-largest city.

“Stockholm is all about being in the know,” says Nilsson. “I sometimes feel like a skewed, homemade stool made out of clay trying to fit in in a cool, functionalistic hotel lobby when I’m in Stockholm. People are constantly aware of media and advertising to an extent that it can complicate your life. I feel more relaxed in Malmö, the small town where I live. It’s a bit like a tiny Berlin. If you see a guy wearing a thong and a leather cap walking down the street then, hey, you don’t really pay that much attention because it’s just part of the landscape, but try walking down the street like that in Stockholm and you’d probably be tasered and locked away.”

Nilsson also brings to mind a new campaign he’s enthusiastic about for telecoms company Telenor through agency Try/Apt Sweden featuring a trifecta of comedic capers.

The Fight leads the bunch with two nerds in a rough bar on the edge of town, about to be torn apart by a monstrous, leather-clad man playing pool. The terrified kids cower in fear as the massive bloke approaches, patrons chanting “kill them!”, until a relaxed chap at the bar, played with precision by actor Peter Stormare, quickly discover that, yes, thanks to a quick YouTube search on his phone, the black ball is supposed to go down last, saving the geeks’ asses while simultaneously underlining Telnor’s fast 4G service in distant, remote locations.

Telenor - The Fight from Bacon Production on Vimeo.

Another spot of late, Celebration for Schweppes, also features deft camerawork and exacting performances from dozens of mixologist dancers demonstrating the art of making a gin and tonic while grooving.

Kanye collaborations

While such commercial work is flowing for Nilsson, music videos have also been prevalent after working with the best in the music industry – including artists such as Kanye West.

“I’ve been collaborating with Kanye lately, and so I’ve been hanging in that circle a little bit,” reveals Nilsson. “You get to see how the creative process flows. It’s very much about the auteur, which is to say the face of the brand – such as Kanye or Beyoncé – but behind the face is a very open, collaborative process. It’s as if anyone can walk into the studio and say, ‘I like the beat but I don’t like the high end’ and, if the advice is good, the music will lose the high end. It’s as genuine as that.”

Discussing the global marketplace and how countries handle branding in different ways, Nilsson explains there may be different outlooks but one thing is constant: “Everyone expects your work to be great – and that’s on a global scale,” he says.

Nilsson is now nestled at Biscuit Filmworks in America and the UK. “A very big part of filmmaking is who you are surrounded by and when,” he explains on representation. “Timing is essential. I’ve had some great years with other companies in the past and I’ve learned a lot. I owe each company plenty. I didn’t know what a production company was before I joined them, and it was the best schooling for me. But to continue to develop you sometimes need to challenge and put yourself in a new situation and environment. As a result, I’m at a very happy place now.