Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

"Can you summon an army of spiders?"

Hi World,

  I like the play with the angles in this poster. Usually the horizon line is...well...horizontal. But with this poster it is changed up a bit, and it works. What also works very well for this poster is the simplicity of the design. It is no secret how I feel about simple design, and this poster goes to show that something does not need to be cluttered and complicated to be successful. Unfortunately, this was just a promo poster and not the official. Marvel has gotten into a slump with their poster game. Here is the official poster released for Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017):

   I don't understand the concept of floating heads and partial humans. It is a cluttered mess. The first poster that I shared was simple and eye catching. My eye doesn't know what to do with this poster. Simplicity is the key to a great poster. Why over-complicate? It is time to break the curse of the floating heads!

Here are a few other Marvel posters that suffer from the same curse: 

  Marvel has truly brought a universe to life with perfect writing, acting, and directing. I can see that the curse of the floating heads has become a staple for their poster design, and I am disappointed. I understand unity in branding, but it is time to break away from the floating heads and bring out the masterpieces I know they can produce.

Until Next Time,

P

7 Elements

Hi World,

  1. Attention
  2. Iconography
  3. Interest
  4. Appeal
  5. Style
  6. Lasting Appeal
  7. Recognizability

  What makes a movie poster successful? These seven elements were mentioned in a blog post that I read recently by Webdesigner Depot. I would have to say that the most important of the seven is a movie posters lasting appeal. When a poster is easily recognized and remembered decades after it's release...then we can safely assume that it includes each of the seven elements on the list and more.

  Below is an example of element #3...Interest. If an audience isn't interested in the poster, why would they see the movie? Check the link above, and learn a bit about these seven elements that make a great movie poster!

Until Next Time,

P

Andrew Sebastian Kwan

Hi World,

  I didn't post over Thanksgiving, so I am going to give you three posts this week on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. On Monday, I reviewed the movie Arrival (2016). I am not a fan of the official poster that was released, and I found an alternative poster that served the movie better. As I was researching alternative designs, I came across an artist, Andrew Sebastian Kwan.

  I really enjoy his take on remaking movie posters. He brings an interesting style to the table: polaroid. I have included two of his designs of movies posters that I have already reviewed. Let me know what you think of his designs in the comments!

Until Next Time,

P

Arrival (2016)

"If you could see your whole life from start to finish, would you change things?"

Hi World,

  I am a sucker for a good alien movie, but I was a little set back by the design of this poster. This is my least favorite poster that I have come across in awhile. The floating heads have been quite a trend in the world of movie posters...and that trend needs to end. There is nothing creative about plopping in a few floating heads or bodies without any thought. There are a bunch of little pieces thrown together that do not get viewers excited about the movie.

  I have no clue how the designer of this poster left the biggest part of this movie hidden in the chaos. The ship! It is a unique shape that is unlike the "typical" UFO. Why wasn't this used as the center of attention in a movie...about an alien invasion?

  I found another version of this poster that is much more successful than the official poster that was released. This poster makes me curious. What is that thing? The text "Why are they here?" indicates some kind of alien, and I am excited to see this movie. In my opinion, the text should read "Why wasn't I the official poster?"

Until Next Time,

P

Drive (2011)

"My partner is a belligerent asshole with his back up against a wall, and now, so am I."

Hi World,

  I came across this poster while doing a little googling, and I fell in love. I just had to see this movie. If the movie is half as good as the poster design, then it is going to be great. 

  A great movie poster will draw in viewers without any prior knowledge about it. That is exactly what this poster did, and the movie was fantastic to back it up. I could say a million things about what made the movie itself a success, but I'll just leave it at, "you really need to watch it."

  There are a lot of things that make this poster a success: the dimensionality, the text, the color scheme, the focus, the simplicity, and so on. The most successful piece of this design is the creation of 2-demensional planes. I love when artist play with the dimensionality of a typically flat design. There is a great sense of depth that is created by the interaction with Gosling and the text. It draws you deeper into the poster starting with his character, to the text, and through the car into the city.

  Here is the movie trailer if you are interested!

Until Next Time,

P

Evolution of Great Movie Posters

Hi World,

  I recently read a really great article about the evolution of great movie posters from the 1950's to the 2000's. Each decade has a great recap or summary of the time period and influential styles that shaped the movie posters. Check it out!

1950's Poster

2000's Poster

Until Next Time,

P

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

"So much has happened since I last saw you! I lost my hammer, like yesterday, so that's still fresh. Then I went on a journey of self-discovery. Then I met you."

Hi World,

  The Thor: Ragnarok (2017) poster has the design world swooning. Another blogger quotes that it is a "psychedelic Photoshopped masterpiece," and I agree. So, let's talk a bit about the psychedelic art movement. The movement took place from 1960-1975. The style is described as being influenced by hallucinogenic drugs, often LSD, using intense colors and curvy typography. This movement uses much of the same techniques, especially the typography, as the Art Nouveau movement (1880-1910). They psychedelic movement influenced much of life in the late 60's and 70's. Music, art, and pop culture saw changes. Here are a few examples of psychedelic art.

  I would also like to talk about the successful use of imagery in the poster. The way the characters are positioned and stacked reminds me of nesting dolls. Starting with the huge Hulk, the characters become slightly smaller down the line. It is clear that these shots were taken with purpose for this design. Movie posters often struggle when minimal thought is put into the images used. When a "good enough" images is used in a poster...it is obvious. The same is true when a well thought out image is used. All in all, this is a beautiful design, and I am very excited to see the film.

Until Next Time,

P

Awesome Alternative Movie Poster Designers

Hi World,

   I found a great blog that highlights some really wonderful poster designers. My blog focuses mainly on the posters that would have been and are being shown in movie theaters, but these designers are creating alternative movie posters...and they are AWESOME!

Here are a few that I fell in love with:

Until Next Time,

P

Blade Runner (1982) Continued

"'More human than human' is our motto."

Hi World,

  In October I decided to try something a little different. I gave my initial thoughts about a movie poster for a movie that I had never seen, Blade Runner (1982). I wanted to look at the design to see what I could figure out about the movie before watching. I was really attracted to the color scheme of the design. There were two obvious parts, the warm and the cool tones. I got a "bad guy" vibe from the characters in white, which confused me a bit. White usually symbolizes something that is pure, and definitely not a "bad guy." The costumes,  makeup, and clear separation from the warm tones is what lead me to my initial conclusion. However, after watching the movie, I have a very different understanding and theory about the intentions behind this design choice.

  The characters in cool tones are Roy Batty (a replicant), Pris (a replicant), and JF Sebastian (a genetic designer). In the movie, we learn the most about the replicants, Roy and Pris, and I began to sympathize with them. Replicants are machines, but they have begun developing personalities and having a mind of their own, so humanities answer: a 4 year life-span. These replicants have returned to Earth to find a potential solution to their extremely short life-span, even though replicants are illegal on Earth and will be killed ("retired")  upon discovery. I believe that these two are portrayed in the white/cool tones because they are, in a way "innocent." Though they have committed violent crimes, off planet, but they were done in search of a true life that they are being denied. There is one other character, JF Sebastian, being presented in a white/cool tone. In a way, this character is also an innocent. We know that he is brilliant, but is unable to move off planet due to his health condition. He is alone. He builds his "friends," but he lives alone and interacts with very few people.

  My ideas of the reasoning behind the design changed greatly after I watched the film, but I did pick up on some of the conflict initially. I immediately was conflicted by the contrast of the characters in white. I believe this was done intentionally by the designer to get viewers to think more about the characters, and not get caught up in the first impression.

I really enjoyed this movie, and I'm always looking to learn more about the content. Here is a great article if you want to read more about Blade Runner.

Until Next Time,

P

Best Movie Posters of 2017

Hi World,

  I came across a fun article about the 17 best movie posters of 2017. Take a look at what made the cut! My personal favorite from the list is the poster for Logan. It has a similar design style to that of the Indiana Jones movie posters.

  Comment below and let me know what you think of the 17 best movie posters of 2017!

Until Next Time,

P

Blade Runner (1982)

"Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it? That's what is is to be a slave."

Hi World,

  I am going to change things up this week. Instead of choosing one of my favorites, that I have already seen, I have decided to choose a movie that I have never seen. This way I can look at the poster more objectively. Next week I will write a shorter post, after I watch the movie, and include any changed or reinforced reactions to the poster. 

  The use of warm and cold colors are very evident in this poster. It seems to be separating the "good" from the "bad." The characters with a blue color tone, have a dark, almost evil expression, even though they are very white in color. When something is represented or pictured as white we, as a society, usually label this as pure or innocent, however, this is far from the vibe that I am getting from the three characters on the left. The characters in blue show a very angry, hateful emotion. "The eyes are the window to the soul" is an old cliche, but true nonetheless, the eyes of the characters in blue are angry and unsettled. Which screams "bad guys" in my mind. The characters with warmer tones, have a serious expression, but there isn't much anger. I get an easier feeling about the characters to the right. They seem to be the "good guys."

  My soul may forever live in the world of 80's syfy, but there is another reason I am so attracted to designs from that era. This is when the "traditional" movie poster came to be. Movie theaters did not always have multiple movies offered at the same time. This became the norm in the 80's. With competition comes more of a need for marketing and advertisement. As a result we were blessed with the movie posters we know and love today. The history of movie posters is something that I am fascinated with, as any designer should be. I am constantly looking to the past for inspiration, and for whatever reason, I always seem to land in the 80's.

  Now that I have taken a closer look to the design of the Blade Runner (1982) poster, I am going to check out the movie to learn more. 

  Next week I will be touching on what more I can connect with the poster after watching the film...that's not all. I am going to compare the original Blade Runner (1982) with its sequel Blade Runner 2049 (2017) as well!

Until Next Time,

P

Jurassic Park (1993)

"God creates dinosaurs. God destroys dinosaurs. God creates man. Man destroys God. Man creates dinosaurs."

"Dinosaurs eat man. Woman inherits the earth."

Hi World,

  I decided to do a little research on this iconic design before I sat down to write today. I found a really great resource that tells the story behind the design of the Jurassic Park logo. (The Making of 7 Iconic Movie Posters) The logo used for the poster includes the original dinosaur skeleton that was used on the cover of Michael Crichton's novel, Jurassic Park. Pretty cool!

  Getting back to the poster...I wanted to talk a bit about the color palette of the poster today. Red is a statement color. Just think about bright red lipstick...statement. Putting red behind the skeleton gives this logo the punch it needs to stand out. Red also screams danger. Immediately, viewers are going to realize that these long-extinct dinosaurs are going to cause some serious problems. The use of color is such a powerful tool. It can be used to create so much emotion and depth in a very simple way. If the yellow, instead of the red, had been used behind the skeleton, it would have had a lighter, less dramatic feel to the composition. The danger would not have been as present. Yellow is a happy color that is a great compliment to the aggressive red that is covering a majority of this poster. The use of yellow, bordering the logo was a very smart design choice. If white had been used, it would have clashed and distracted from the text. With the text being the only white aspect of this design it really stands out. Viewers will see the beautiful, saturated logo, and then look to the text to decipher the meaning behind it all. This is truly an iconic poster. The use of color is one of the many reasons it is a great design.

Until Next Time,

P

PS...I have included a link to a Ted Talk by Chip Kidd, the designer behind the iconic T-Rex skeleton. He talks a bit about his process with this specific design.

Superman (1978)

"Really, Lois, supposing that man had shot you? Is it worth risking your life over ten dollars, two credit cards, a hairbrush, and a lipstick?"

Hi World,

  Simplicity. It is something that I have touched on before. Of the other movie posters that I have already written about, this poster best exemplifies the use of simplicity.  There are no characters clearly present in the poster design. It is implied that the primary colors of Superman's suit and cape are moving faster than the eye can see leaving us with only a blur flying through the clouds. This poster leaves us with little to no knowledge about the film itself...other than the statement that "you'll believe a man can fly."

  Looking at this poster, I can see many similarities between its design and that of the Art Deco movement. Typically, this style creates an image that's sole purpose is to provide viewers with something interesting to look at. At first glance, this is a piece of art without purpose, but when viewers read "you'll believe a man can fly," there is clearly a deeper meaning to the poster. It leaves viewers with a sense of mystery and something definitely larger than life. Something is flying through the clouds, is it a bird? a plane? it's Superman. My favorite trademark from this movement is the way light is depicted in a stylized ray, much like the ray created by Superman flying through the clouds.

  Here are a few images to help show my connection between this poster and the Art Deco movement. (I have also included a remake of a movie poster for Superman 1978 that is directly created in the Art Deco style).

Until Next Time,

P

             

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

"It's not the years, honey, it's the mileage."

Hi World,

  Today I am going to talk a bit about my first love, and the inspiration for the name of my blog, Raiders of the Lost Ark. This is one of my favorite movies and movie posters of all time. Let's start by talking a bit about the creation of two-dimensional planes that represent key points in the film. There is so much depth created using this illustrated style. As I search the background, I am first drawn into the sphere in the center. This, of course, parallels the iconic scene as Indy is running to escape the giant boulder booby-trap to make it out with the Golden Idol in the beginning of the movie. Moving forward through the scene, we meet a beautiful border that highlights major characters from the film. On the lower left of the border, the iconic duo, Indy and Marian, is tied to a post avoiding the doom and destruction that follows the opening of the Ark. In the foreground, we have Indy and the lost Ark of the Covenant. The hero and the dark power are front and center in this design, just as it should be.

  The creation of this poster was clearly influenced by Art Nouveau (1890-1914). Detailed framework and a sexualized central figure and a detailed border is very iconic and recognizable to this style. A long and sexualized central figure, usually female, is often portrayed in this particular style. It is fitting that the central figure, in this poster, be none other than the great Indiana Jones himself. Usually, the women were depicted in long flowing garments. Indy may not exactly meet that definition, but it is clear that he is the intended focal point and his character is being sexualized. Art Nouveau is a style that I am constantly reflecting on and using for inspiration in my personal artwork. It was immediately clear to me where the inspiration from this poster derived from.

  All great movie posters have one thing in common...they are iconic. Even if the title of the movie had been removed from this poster, there would be no question in my mind what movie was being promoted. Indiana Jones is so well known and well depicted, in his fedora and whip, that it would be nearly impossible to misidentify the movie. There is only one aspect of this poster that is more iconic that the infamous character...the font. Generally, I do not like the use of gradients, but this typeface is one of the most recognizable fonts in existence. If any similar font comes into view, I immediately connect with Indiana Jones. That is good branding.

  There are many reasons why I love Raiders of the Lost Ark. The branding and artwork will continue to stand the test of time. This film is almost 15 years older than I am, but I still find myself coming back to this image, style, and design for inspiration. Throughout my career I will strive to create a lasting composition that well become as Iconic and the Indiana Jones series.

Until Next Time,

P

Star Trek (2009)

"Beam me up, Scotty."

Hi World,

  I am going to dive head first into this. First, let's talk a bit about the poster. The use of a monochromatic color palette is very successful. I am a big believer in simplicity and simplifying when possible. Sticking with a monochromatic color palette makes this image easier to look at and easier to take in. It is rare to find a successful movie poster that is cluttered and over complicated. The purpose of a movie poster is to attract viewers. If something is over complicated and hard to decipher, viewers quickly move onto the next option.

  Another successful aspect of this poster is the three distinct images that represent the hierarchy of the film. 

1. The three main characters who the film/series follows. 

2. The current danger. 

And 3. The interior battle that Kirk has to overcome (his rebellious nature). 

  The inclusion of Kirk on a motorcycle brings the poster full circle with the movie. In the beginning of the movie, we see Kirk struggling to find a purpose. Aggression, sarcasm, and arrogance are swarming the character, preventing him from living up to the Captain Kirk we have grown to know throughout the former series. Time travel has presented a new path for the Captain of the USS Enterprise. We are able to see the classic character grow into and evolve to become a powerful leader who will 'boldly go where no man has gone before.'

  Now, let's move onto the font choice. It is nice to see that a new font was developed for this film. It is not the same as any that have been used for the original series. The nature of Star Trek is its advanced, futuristic theme. The font is bold and almost alien, just like the movie. The use of a sharp, san serif font was a clever choice. A few fonts have been used to promote the former series, but this presents a more futuristic aspect that the others had been lacking. The sharp points in the letters, and the fact that they all have the same X height, is what gives us a futuristic, heigh tech feel to the overall font.

  The only issue that I have with the composition of the poster is the battle scene in the middle. The tones seem to get lost in translation. I am having a hard time figuring out what is happening. The clearest indicator that it could be a battle scene is the minor additions of warmer tones. If those had been left out, the entire sense of danger would have been missed. I have come across this poster many times, but I am just now realizing what this image is depicting. An image that is slightly more in focus may have offered some more clarity to the overall image.

  All in all, this is a successful design that captures the essence of the film. The use of a hierarchy is the structure of the poster what the most successful design element used. With only minor confusion in the battle scene, this is a wonderful representation of one of my personal favorites: Star Trek (2009).

Until Next Time,

P

A Little About Me

Hi World,

I am currently in my senior year at Mount Mary University in Milwaukee, WI. I am an artist, graphic designer, illustrator, writer, and quite a bit more, but that's enough for now. Looking for a way to combine my love for design and writing has presented many possibilities in the workforce, but I am looking for a place to combine them without restriction. So...I present to you...my blog.

Here I will talk about movies and design (my two favorite things). I have always been intrigued by movies and movie posters. What makes them successful and unsuccessful? Why do I want to see certain movies over others based on the official posters?  I want to use my training as a designer to compare the promotion of movies to the movies themselves. My goal is to look at them from the perspective as a designer and figure out what went right and what went wrong in the promotion design.

Until Next Time,

P