Biography

Adrian Bol: Seeking Truth in Thrillers

"As a director I’m interested in the truth of the story that I portray. For me the most appealing characters are outwardly static, but inwardly charged with energy by overriding emotions. That’s also why I prefer to write my own scripts: it’s easier for me to find truthfulness – and to convey that in a film – if the story’s emotional core is based on my own experience". Seeing the development of his work, it is clear that it has become increasingly important ever since he started making films.

Art school

Filmmaking got a hold of Adrian during his first year at the prestigious Gerrit Rietveld Academy of Art in Amsterdam: he painted but also experimented with film - and his work got him noticed. A production company offered him a job as director, and he left school to take the opportunity. While he continued to paint, from then on he focused on filmmaking.

Feature films

Adrian's rapidly built skill set resulted in his first feature film CASTINGX, a dark voyage into voyeurism, seduction and revenge that premiered at the Dutch Film Festival and was reviewed by Luc de Rooy as 'an outline of a future masterpiece'. His short film SWEET BETTY was the result of a collaboration with Robby Muller and Rutger Hauer at the Rotterdam Film Factory. It was shown at the International Rotterdam Film Festival.

Character driven

His second feature BLINDSPOT, which won multiple awards internationally, was also a psychological thriller. It's difficult to pinpoint for Adrian why he prefers this genre, but this fascination is not just about the suspense or the action, he says: "It's actually more important that the characters get under your skin; there has to be a development there. In the protagonists themselves, and in their relationships too."

Style

"Films are all about pacing and I visually don’t allow the viewer an objective and safe view from the outside. I'd like to choose a more subjective point of view that emphasizes the perspective of the characters, bringing an immediate, visceral feeling to the film by throwing the audience into the middle of the action".

First international feature film

In 2019 Bol directed and wrote LEGACY OF LIES, starring Scott Adkins, Yuliia Sobol and Martin McDougall. The film features Martin Baxter, an ex-MI6 agent, who is thrown back into the world of espionage and high stakes when a beautiful young Ukrainian journalist, seeks his help uncovering the shocking truth about operations conducted by the Rusian Secret Service. It’s a film that sets out to keep the tension in the air from start to finish. Not only by adrenaline pumping action scenes, but also by moments of dramatic intensity, making it nearly impossible to turn your attention to anywhere but the screen. 

Collaborative writer

In 2020 Adrian worked as a collaborating writer  on ‘The Man from Rome’, a film by Sergio Dow, based on the best selling novel ‘The Seville Communion’ by accomplished Spanish writer Arturo Pérez-Reverte.

Filmography

2020: The Cardinal (IN DEVELOPMENT - Screenwriter/director)

2020: Rain Dogs (IN DEVELOPMENT - screenwriter/director)

2020: The Man from Rome (collaborative writer)

2019: Legacy of Lies (screenwriter/director/producer)

2016: Angel Snuck (SHORT - screenwriter/director)

2013: Idiosyncratic (SHORT - screenwriter/director)

2008: Blindspot (screenwriter/director/producer)

2007: Sweet Betty (SHORT - director)

2005: Castingx (screenwriter/director/producer)

Awards/Selected Filmography

- Best International Director for BLINDSPOT at the New York Independent International Film Festival;

- Best Feature Film for BLINDSPOT at the New York Independent International Film Festival;

- Best Feature Film for BLINDSPOT at the Waterford International Film Festival;

- Best Director for BLINDSPOT at the Estapona International Film Festival;

- Jury Commendation for IDIOSYNCRATIC at Filminute Online Film Festival;

- BLINDSPOT - Official Selection Los Angeles International Film Festival;

- BLINDSPOT - Official Selection Film by the Sea International Film Festival;

- CASTINGX - Official Selection Dutch Film Festival;

- SWEET BETTY - Official Selection International Film Festival Rotterdam.