S'maak

S'maak is a mixed-use development by MLA+ and S'tats Architecten located in front of Schiedam's central station in the Netherlands. A new urban landmark integrating housing, offices, retail and gastronomic spaces, the design draws inspiration from Schiedam's historic windmills — reinterpreting their silhouettes through leaning volumes and a strongly vertical composition. VZ Studio was commissioned to produce 10 exterior stills capturing the full scale and complexity of the urban ensemble. The central technical challenge was building the entire surrounding context from scratch — streets, canals, the existing urban fabric and even aerial city views were constructed entirely in 3D using specialized asset libraries, with no drone footage available. The project had an unusual timeline: it began in 2020, paused for several years and resumed in 2025. Two separate phases, the same level of commitment, and the same trusted client. S'tats Architecten is one of our strongest ongoing relationships in the Dutch market.