Kamiel Meijers from 51North. Making the digital journey tangible.

Introducing you to one of our Dutch Digital Design curators. Our panel of creative experts who scout new digital and interactive work. Together they select the amazing cases you will find on our Dutch Digital Design website, and that are promoted on our social media channels - Instagram and LinkedIn - and other (international) media platforms like The Drum. This time we chatted with Kamiel Meijers - co-founder and creative director at 51North - a design and development studio in the South of the Netherlands and partner agency of the Dutch Digital Design foundation. We talked about where and how it all started for Kamiel in this industry, taking 51North to the next level and Vera van de Seyp - a Dutch designer and creative coder who currently works as a research assistant at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Let us introduce you to Kamiel and his digital world.

It all started with an interest in creating things, drawing and an uncle who gave Kamiel his first look into Photoshop - showing him the tips and tricks that got Kamiel hooked. Back in 1998. And his love for music - listening and creating music through a program called Fasttracker which ran on MSDOS. It gave Kamiel a taste of the immense range of options and opportunities within the digital realm: millions of colours and thousands of games. Specifically ‘point and click adventure games (by LucasArts). These were like a digital cartoon, mixed with solving puzzles. He loved the interaction - giving you a way to explore the story your way: driving your own cartoon.

‘What I really loved was the fact that all these different disciplines were coming together: graphic design, audio and interactivity.’

So next came the decision on how to follow up on these interests career-wise. Technology fascinated Kamiel, but not only technology. It had to be creative too, however not too arty, and perhaps a little entrepreneurial too. Lucky for him a new course had just started: Communication & Multimedia Design (CMD) at Zuyd University of Applied Sciences - the first CMS course in the Netherlands (2001). The course offered a broad programme, including an introduction into Adobe Flash.

‘Amazing! Design, animation and sound combined. Without too much coding involved. I made sure to delve into that a little deeper. Together with graphic design. And now it felt that I had the tools to make a choice: doing just any local part-time job or already starting something myself with these new tools I had acquired. So, that’s what I did. I did some moonlighting as a digital designer for a local concert venue - next to my studies. I was one of the first to be offering this in my part of the country. The south was originally more traditional than the rest of the Netherlands.’

First steps into digital entrepreneurship

‘Together with Marcel Bold - fellow student and now finance director at 51North - I started a studio with the name WebSpun Multimedia Crew - in line with our interests and hobbies at that time ;-). Later Daan Kusters - now managing director at 51North - also joined as development and hosting specialist. We also knew him from our studies. We worked well as a trio as the amount of work increased, and we could even start paying rent for a proper work space. This meant the birth of 51North in 2008. 51North is the latitude of Sittard, our home town. It also sounded a little mystical - as in ‘area 51’. Plus we already had dreams to expand internationally, so it had to be an English name.’

Being 51North

‘I am proud of where we got to. We have kept growing steadily. In 2015 Jaap Kraan - now partnerships director - joined us from DDB & Tribal. To give us that extra edge and insights from the world of advertising. We moved from being hired as a freelance team working on other agencies’ projects to handling our own projects.

With regards to the team, we try to hire locally, look for local talent and offer internships to local colleges. We are also making every effort to have a diverse team. People from all walks of life. To give us a wider and more complete look of the world. This means we don’t only look at digital talent. If you have got something that works for us or for our clients, you could be the next 51North hire. For example, our technology director Kyle Adams has studied history, but is a self-taught developer.

We started off as a purely interactive agency. Now we have grown into an agency that can offer the whole digital journey - from design and visual to development of front-and backend. We connect the dots in the journey. Our mission is to turn anything that feels like a challenge to a smooth digital experience, or as we would like to say it: ‘we turn clunky into flawless.’

What does that mean for the team at 51North? We make sure that it doesn’t just look beautiful from the outside. It needs to be a flawless, evocative experience that connects with its users, and brings out emotion. We want to tell the whole story. For such an experience, the storytelling and the technology need to run flawlessly - from UX and motion to CMS and development.’

What’s next for Kamiel?

‘As an agency I would like us to share and show (off) our work more. We have a tendency to be very modest. This suits us, but our work deserves more. I would like us to not just share a clean-cut showreel of our work, but an impression of how we are able to move fast, with the time. A look behind the scenes of how we solve challenges. How we work as a team/agency. How we make things. Our process of creating the optimal digital product. To share more in-depth insights.

As a person I would like to explore how different technologies - like generative AI - work together with other digital technologies. I would like to be able to create without having to get into code. In other words, I’m not a code guy ;-) I would very much like to look into how certain technologies can help make this less complicated and more accessible. Technologies like Figma for automating more repetitive design work, Spline for 3D animation, P5.js for generative art and ChatGPT, Adobe Firefly and Midjourney for idea generation.

Also, I would like to look into digital projects that are more tangible. A combination of audio-visual and animation with more mechanical executions, like installations. Bringing technologies together. For a smooth, tangible emotive experience. Creating cross-overs from the digital world into the more tangible world. Bringing back more tactile experiences.

That also brings me onto the person I would like put a spotlight on: Vera van de Seyp.

Vera van de Seyp

‘Vera van de Seyp is a Dutch creative coder and computational designer. A computational designer uses data-driven processes to optimise the various stages of the design process. Her work for Massachusetts Institute of Technology - a research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts - is truly experimental, but at the same time very tangible. Everything she does, is some sort of trial: the outcome can never be predicted.

For example, she did an experiment with a knitting machine and generative AI. Every pixel created by AI was a stitch. Those stitches became a full knit, and the knit became an animation. Result: a knitted animation that nobody could predict what it would eventually look like.

She researches what can be done with data and digital technologies. What are the boundaries? How can it be implemented in the real world? Would it be useful? It also takes away the fear for these technologies. By making it more tangible and transparent. It shows us the opportunities, and inspires new ideas. Ideas that can be turned into useful tools for clients.

I would love to invite her over for a series of brainstorming sessions for our Dutch Digital Design community. To use data and explore its boundaries. A fantastic mix of creativity and technology. And then to translate this to output in the physical world.’

What Kamiel believes in

‘My top tip would be to stick with what you truly love. With what makes you tick. This way you can develop your own style and taste, and substantiate what you do and don’t like. Don’t follow the crowd. Stand out. We live in ‘the age of average’. Look around what inspires you, and recreate this into something that is you. Look at ways to mix it up, and give it your own personal touch: make it unique. Look beyond the screen. There is so much more to get inspiration from. Get out of that vicious circle of all looking at the same things, on a screen.

Also, I feel it is important to be passionate, open and sincere. Don’t hide behind arrogance. Collaborate with others. They will inspire you. A click with others is important

All of the above will allow you to be yourself, and develop your own creative self-confidence. That will feel good.

That’s how I have been able to become the creative entrepreneur that I am now. Not to make bags of money, but to be able to do what I like doing most. I have created my own setting and culture. And it is still working for me after 16 years. Doing what I love and getting like-minded people to join our gang. For me, the perfect combination between passion, freedom and responsibility.’