Key Art

Nice Work #1

Nordeste, designed by Egil Haraldsen, 2005

“Generally I would say that there are too many designers who follow the international trends rather than think for themselves. Of course, society needs more aesthetes. I will be happy to be a politically independent Minister of Taste for future governments – and I shall have unlimited power, a large screen and be allowed to smoke in the office.” ¹

I first became aware of the work of Egil Haraldsen in 2005 when the producer John Maynard proudly thrust the Norwegian artwork for Look Both Ways under my nose with a flourish. “Now that’s a poster, mate,” he said. And he was right. Compared to the design I’d overseen for the same film the previous year it was full of intent, movement and style. As a bonus, you could actually see what was going on, and that it was a film with people in it. It was a huge improvement, I had to grudgingly admit.

(An aside: A few years later, Maynard drew upon Haraldsen’s services for the My Year Without Sex key art. Not my favourite piece of his, but as a visual representation of Sarah Watt’s surely-wilfully-ugly depiction of chaotic domesticity it’s pretty much on the button. “He’s a lot easier to work with than you mate,” was Maynard’s ebullient summation of the process. His promise to “just give Egil a ring” tends to get regularly wheeled out with a grin when I fail to immediately produce an award-winning first draft on anything we work on together.)

Throughout his career Haraldsen has worked mainly a book designer, although he has produced an enormous volume of work (over 100 pieces) for the Norwegian film distributor Arthaus. His work for them is instantly recognisable as part of a continuing whole, each film maintaining its own identity but seamlessly fitting into the overall grand design.

It’s a general rule of effective key art to maintain some respect for the aesthetics of the film in the design, although the common interpretation of that rule is a lot more literal than Haraldsen’s, and this is where his focus as a book designer is absolutely apparent. Not just because his designs ignore convention, but rather that the visual aesthetic does not appear to be the most important aspect for him to express. By necessity, working on visual solutions for books lends itself to more interpretive and inventive presentation of the content, rather than the lazily literal nature of working in the service of a visual medium. And it’s this ethos that Haraldsen brings to his work.

I love that his sense of proportion feels bracingly pedantic (although he claims to not think of the grid or the golden proportion when he works, blaming instead a “classical art education and years [of] experience”) but what is overlaid on this solid foundation is often dizzying in its lack of respect for the status quo. Huge negative spaces command the eye, while free-floating images crash into each other, splintering and breaking across copy and art.

  
The designs have an astonishing vigour to them – the collage of elements chopped and dropped with seeming abandon to produce something startling and unexpected. There’s definitely a touch of David Carson and Neville Brody in there too; how could there not be, with the incredible typographic confidence on display – multi-layered, chopped-up, obstructed text confusing and informing in equal measure. And the billing blocks! The tiny, wonderful, screw-the-film-poster-rhetoric billing blocks.I love them.

Finding just one piece to pull out of such an amazing portfolio was almost impossible; I’d have been happy to use any of these images as the featured piece. But the Nordeste artwork is such a complete summation of Haraldsen’s style: the negative space, the unusual cropping, the rigid structure and the chaotic collage – it’s all there, wonderfully expressive and inviting. And after all, that’s its job. And I remember seeing this design above all the others (well this and maybe the artwork for Sztuczki, above ) and being fascinated by it. How was it possible to design such a thing? How did all those decisions get made? What were the reasons behind them? Where the hell were the sort of clients that would not only encourage this kind of design, but actually use it? How much was a flight to Oslo?

Even in the few years since I first became mesmerized with these questions, the wider industry has come some way towards reconciling itself with the work of Egil Haraldsen. You can see it most clearly in Eric Skillman and Sarah Habibi’s Criterion Collection designs, always at the vanguard of interpretation. But even outside of Mount Olympus, things are slowly and surely progressing. Boundaries are being pushed and new ideas are slipping through the net every day.

Of course there is a general acceptance of very poor work throughout the business: lazy steals, pre-chewed slop, tired template trash. But slowly and subtly, year on year, a creeping bravery is starting to take hold at the fringes. Clients are less and less dismissive of designs that even five years ago they would have baulked at.

Note ‘less dismissive’ rather than ‘accepting’, or ‘happy’. We still have a long way to go yet, most of us.

Coming up:
Next: Steve Frankfurt and Rosemary’s Baby
The Social Network and the perils of success
Crocodile Dundee, and leaving Polish design to the Poles
Noise: Make Australia Beautiful

Coral: Rekindling Venus

This is the key art – or rather, these are the key art – for Lynette Wallworth’s new work Coral: Rekindling Venus which is a video work designed solely for fulldome planetarium. It was quite a challenge to represent a circular, full field-of-vision immersion onto a 27×41 canvas. So I took a different tack. It’s an astonishing, otherworldly experience that should knock any preconceptions you have about video art squarely in the chops, and as such is highly recommended if you have a planetarium nearby.

Despite the Gods

This is a pretty interesting film about filmmaking, spiritual journeys and cultural differences (and especially cultural differences to filmmaking as a spiritual journey). I didn’t realise Jennifer Lynch was only 19 when she did (the much underrated) Boxing Helena. Imagine being at the centre of that shitstorm, with all the pressure that would come with being the daughter of the pre-eminent American filmmaker of his generation.Then imagine how it would have been at 19. So I thought at the very least she deserved some devotional art :)

Anima

Short (2012)

Tender

Hey, it’s a short. Why can’t we have a quad poster? No reason whatsoever.

Hesher

Burning Man

Teaser art.

Red Dog

The Eye of the Storm

Tracker

Face to Face

Hail

Mooncake and Crab

Client: Peachy Films

Mad Bastards

Bear

Here I Am

Griff the Invisible

Client: Transmission Films

The White Ribbon

Like Minds

Last Train to Freo

Disgrace

The Assassination of Richard Nixon

The Good Life

Client: Siren

Fish Tank

Animal Kingdom

Candy

© Becker Films/Sherman Pictures. Reproduced with permission.

The Parking Lot Movie

Client: Meghan Eckman

Primal

Client: Primal Films

Lou

Lou Unused

Lanfranchi’s Memorial Discotheque

Client: Bitter Man Films

The Tree

Client: Transmission Films

Bourke Boy

Client: Scarlett Pictures

Making Samson & Delilah

Just in case you were in any doubt as to whether these kids can act or not.
Client: Scarlett Pictures

Griff the Invisible

Client: Transmission Films

Hesher (Sundance)

Sadly I do not know who the illustration was done by, it’s really amazing – I can’t claim credit, I just did some editing and turned it into a poster. After careful consideration I decided that this should really be seen, rather than not seen, and my site is as good a place as any to show it.

Animal Kingdom

Client: Porchlight Films / Madman

The White Ribbon

Client: Transmission Films

Fish Tank

Client: Transmission Films

Franswa Sharl

Client: Porchlight Films

Animal Kingdom

Client: Porchlight Films

Foreign Parts

Pop

Client: Hunter Productions

The Party Shoes

Client: Blackfella Films

Jacob

Client: Blackfella Films

Little Fish

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days

The Black Balloon

Candy

Disgrace

Client: Fortissimo

Three Dollars

The Objective

Rogue

Client: Roadshow

Suburban Mayhem

The Square

The World’s Fastest Indian

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

We Don’t Live Here Anymore

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Water

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Untitled J & J Project aka The Forbidden Kingdom

Client: Arclight Films

The Weeping Camel

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

The Square

Client: Blue Tongue Films / Film Depot / Roadshow

The Motorcycle Diaries aka Diarios de Motocicleta

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

The Guitar

Client: Kojo Pictures

Tarnation

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Surveillance

Client: Arclight Films

Suburban Mayhem

© Icon Films. Reproduced with permission.

Stone Bros

Client: AFS

Spider

Client: Blue Tongue Films

Soldiers of Peace

The Snowman

Client: Zealot Productions

Sexy Thing

Samson and Delilah

Client: Scarlett Pictures

Roundabout

Client: Film Depot

Romulus, My Father

Client: Footprint Films

The Rage in Placid Lake

Client: Macgowan Films

p.s.

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Prime Mover

Client: Porchlight Films

Plains Empty

Client: Film Depot

Oyster Farmer

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Otto; or, Up With Dead People

Client: Kojo Pictures

Netherland Dwarf

Client: Aquarius Films

Nana

Client: Scarlett Pictures

Mister Lonely

Client: Kojo Pictures

Martyrs

Client: Kojo Films

Marigold

© Becker Films. Reproduced with permission.

Macbeth

Client: Mushroom Pictures / Palace Films

Lucky Country

Client: Footprint Films

Lucky

Client: Blue Tongue Films

Love Comes Lately

Client: Kojo Pictures

Look at Me aka Comme une Image

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Little Fish

© Icon Films. Reproduced with permission.

Jewboy

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Invasion

The Home Song Stories

Client: Porchlight Films

Green Bush

Client: Scarlett Pictures

Good Night, and Good Luck

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Gettin’ Square

Client: Jonathan Teplitzky / Mushroom Pictures / WTA / Maquarie Nine / Freshwater Films

Garage

Client: Kojo Pictures

Fuel

Client: Blue Tongue Films

Festival Express

Dying Breed

Client: Ambience / Omnilab
Created with Omnilab and Droga5

The Door in the Floor

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Non ti Muovere aka Don’t Move

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Crossbow

Client: Aquarius Films

Crocodile Dreaming

Contact

Children of Huang Shi aka Children of the Silk Road

Client: Bluewater Pictures

Che

Client: Transmission Films

Candy

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Bruce LaBruce: Four Films

Client: Kojo Pictures

Beautiful

Client: Kojo Pictures

The Films of Carlos Reygadas

Client: Kojo Pictures

Balibo

Client: Footprint Films

Balibo

Client: Footprint Films

The Assassination of Richard Nixon

© Dendy Films. Reproduced with permission.

Antichrist

Client: Transmission Films

$9.99

$9.99

13 aka Botched

Client: Arclight Films

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days

Client: Kojo Pictures