The career of Flemish actor Matthias Schoenaerts went global in 2011. Bullhead made its international debut at the Berlin Film Festival and was later selected as Belgium's candidate for the 2012 Foreign-language Oscar. Meanwhile the 34-year-old claimed his first substantial English-language part in the US remake of Loft, then a leading role in French for Jacques Audiard in Un goût de rouille et d'os. Both films are due out in 2012.
Text Ian Mundell
Those who have worked with Schoenaerts are immediately struck by his presence as an actor. Loft director Erik Van Looy recalls his earliest appearances as a child actor, playing opposite his father Julien on stage in The Little Prince. 'Even then you could see that he had a magnetic presence,' he says. The same was true of his small early roles on the big screen, in films such as Any Way The Wind Blows, Black Book and A Girl. 'Every time he was there he lit up the screen.'
'Matthias gave me confidence, through the way that he works and because I knew he would make it happen. His dedication is 200 per cent, and that shows.' - Michaël R. Roskam
Michaël R. Roskam, who directed him in Bullhead, says the same thing. 'You feel it immediately, he has this kind of DNA that all great actors have.' Their first meeting was for Roskam's 2005 short film The One Thing To Do. During the casting session, the director watched Schoenaerts on the screen of a small video camera. 'There was already a transformation. Something happens and you can't really capture it. It's like being photogenic, but it's also in the movement. I just felt it immediately.'
They worked together to develop Jacky, the central character in Bullhead. 'This character was great on the page, but you could see that a bad actor would destroy it,' Roskam says. 'Matthias gave me confidence, through the way that he works and because I knew he would make it happen. His dedication is 200 per cent, and that shows.'
The physical transformation that Schoenaerts made for the film, gaining 27 kilos and pumping up to body-builder proportions, was backed with detailed work on the character's primal state of mind. 'He prepares a great deal in advance, and thinks about every little detail of the character,' Roskam says. 'He has this package in his head and he can open it and use it on set.'
Van Looy had a similar experience directing Schoenaerts, first in the original Loft and then in the US version, The Loft. 'He thinks about it a lot and talks about it a lot, but once on the set he just goes for it,' Van Looy says, comparing him to a boxer. 'As a boxer you have to think, of course, but you have to decide really quickly what to do. And that's what he does.'
His breakthrough in France is down to agent Rosalie Cimino, who offered to represent him after seeing Bullhead. That role, and others in Loft and Pulsar, made a strong impression on her. 'He stands out for his charisma and refined acting skills,' she says. 'The way he works to build a character is comparable, in my opinion, to the use of chiaroscuro in painting. There is great nuance and great power at the same time.'
Cimino had been in contact with Audiard's casting director for several weeks when she saw Schoenaerts and had a strong intuition that he should meet the director. She made the introduction, but Audiard is notoriously demanding in his choice of actors. 'In the course of his working meetings with the director, it was Matthias' talent which made the difference,' she says.
'He's got it all for an international career. He's ready for it, but whether he wants it is another matter.' - Erik Van Looy
She sees further possibilities for Schoenaerts to work in Belgium, France and beyond. 'Matthias is a chameleon actor whose potential is enormous. His acting range and the fact that he speaks English perfectly may well seduce international directors.'
Van Looy agrees. 'He's got it all for an international career. He's ready for it, but whether he wants it is another matter.' He expects Schoenaerts to choose movies that are close to his heart. 'I'm sure he won't pop up in Transformers 4, but he will do a movie like A History of Violence. I think he's an actor with an edge, and he'll look for material with an edge.'
Roskam hopes his friend will get a chance to work with some of the great international directors. 'If Martin Scorsese discovered him, I'd be curious to see whether he would still work with Leonardo DiCaprio. If I was Leo, I would watch my back with Matthias coming.'
(i) Bullhead is nominated for this year's Foreign-language Academy Award