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Ex Machina / screen print / Jock / USA

24.10.16

Poster Poster
Title
Ex Machina
AKA
--
Year of Film
2015
Director
Alex Garland
Starring
Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac, Alicia Vikander, Sonoya Mizuno, Corey Johnson, Claire Selby
Origin of Film
UK
Genre(s) of Film
Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac, Alicia Vikander, Sonoya Mizuno, Corey Johnson, Claire Selby,
Type of Poster
Screen print
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2015
Designer
Jock
Artist
Jock
Size (inches)
24" x 36"
SS or DS
SS
Tagline
--

Ex Machina, the directorial debut of Alex Garland, was one of my favourite films of 2015. An independent, British-made sci-fi, the film focuses on the technology of artificial intelligence (AI) and what it means to be human. Domhnall Gleeson plays Caleb, a programmer working for the world’s foremost technology company (the fictional Blue Book). Caleb wins a competition to visit the remote home of the enigmatic CEO of the company, Nathan (Oscar Isaac). Once there he discovers that he is to take part in a top secret test of an artificial intelligence that Nathan has been developing.

Caleb is told that he must subject the AI, named Ava (Alicia Vikander), to the Turing test and see if he can distinguish her from another human by asking her a series of questions. It soon becomes clear that Ava is a remarkable achievement and Caleb becomes very excited by the implications of the technology. Caleb discovers that her creation has come at a price and Ava has engineered a plan to escape from her cell with his help. Unbeknownst to the pair, Nathan is fully aware of the duplicity and the trio are set for a deadly encounter.

This screen print was released in 2015 by the incomparable Mondo, the Austin-based purveyors of limited edition posters and film merchandise. The design and art is the work of Jock, a British illustrator who works on comics, screen prints and is also a concept artist for films. He had collaborated with Alex Garland on Dredd (2012) before being asked to create artwork for Ex Machina. He has also worked on promotional images for films including Iron Man 3 and The Dark Knight Trilogy. Jock has created some fantastic posters over the past few years and they can be viewed on his official website, which also features images of his film concept art and comics work.

A compendium of his work called The Art of Jock has just been released and I highly recommend picking up a copy. See details here.

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson / one sheet / USA

04.06.12

Poster Poster
Title
Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson
AKA
--
Year of Film
2008
Director
Alex Gibney
Starring
Hunter S. Thompson, Johnny Depp
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Hunter S. Thompson, Johnny Depp,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2008
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Ralph Steadman
Size (inches)
27" x 39 11/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
--

Artwork by the brilliant Ralph Steadman on this poster for Alex Gibney‘s documentary on the life of the late, great American journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson. The title refers to Gonzo journalism, which is a style of reporting where the reporter involves themselves in the story to such a degree that they become a key part of it. The documentary features some fantastic, never-before-seen video recordings of Thompson as well as excerpts from audio tapes and unpublished manuscripts.

British artist Steadman was a long-time collaborator with Thompson and provided artwork for many of his articles and books, including the classic Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. He is also responsible for the artwork on the British poster for the 1980 film Where the Buffalo Roam, which is a semi-biographical story based on a period of time in Thompson’s life.

Director Gibney is also responsible for the brilliant documentaries Taxi to the Dark Side and Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room as well as several others.

The trailer for the film is on YouTube.

Local Hero / one sheet / USA

20.08.12

Poster Poster
Title
Local Hero
AKA
--
Year of Film
1983
Director
Bill Forsyth
Starring
Burt Lancaster, Peter Riegert, Fulton Mackay, Denis Lawson, Norman Chancer, Peter Capaldi, Rikki Fulton, Alex Norton, Jenny Seagrove, Jennifer Black, Christopher Rozycki, Gyearbuor Asante, John M. Jackson, Dan Ammerman
Origin of Film
UK
Genre(s) of Film
Burt Lancaster, Peter Riegert, Fulton Mackay, Denis Lawson, Norman Chancer, Peter Capaldi, Rikki Fulton, Alex Norton, Jenny Seagrove, Jennifer Black, Christopher Rozycki, Gyearbuor Asante, John M. Jackson, Dan Ammerman,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1983
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
27" x 40 15/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
830088
Tagline
A beautiful coastline... A rich oil man wants to develop it. A poor beach bum wants to live on it. An entire town wants to profit by it. And a real-live mermaid wants to save it... Only one of them will get their way.

One of the best British films of all time, and certainly one of the best comedies, Local Hero was directed by Scotsman Bill Forsyth and tells the story of what happens when a Texan company reveals plans to turn a tiny stretch of the Northern Scottish coastline into a massive oil refinery. Burt Lancaster plays Felix Happer, the head of Knox Oil and Gas, who sends one of his hot-shot executives Mac (Peter Riegert) to the tiny village of Ferness to make a purchase offer to the residents. Mac meets up with local Knox representative Oldsen (Peter Capaldi) and the pair start negotiations with the help of local solicitor and pub owner Urquhart (Peter Capaldi).

Despite the enthusiasm of the majority of the locals, who relish the idea of the money heading their way, things don’t exactly go to plan as Mac starts to enjoy life in the sleepy village, Oldsen meets and falls in love with a local girl (mermaid?) called Marina and an old beachcomber who lives in a shack on the beach reveals he has no plans to sell up and move on.

The film features a brilliantly sharp script full of memorable characters, hilarious exchanges and some wonderful sight gags; one in particular featuring an abseiling therapist spelling out a message on a window is perfectly done. It also features a very memorable score by Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler. Local Hero could rightly be called a treasure of a movie and I strongly urge you to check it out if you’re yet to experience it.

The village of Pennan near Aberdeen was used for the village location shots and is now a scene of pilgrimage for the fans of the film, particularly the red phone box that plays a prominent role in the story. In 2008, the British critic Mark Kermode travelled to the village with Bill Forsyth to interview him about the film and hold a special screening on the 25th anniversary of its release. The video of the event can be watched here.

I’m unsure who is responsible for the artwork on this US one sheet but the UK quad also features a very similar image of Mac (with the addition of the phone box). If you have any ideas who might have been responsible please get in touch.

The original trailer is on YouTube.

The Super Cops / B2 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Shame / one sheet / USA

07.10.13

Poster Poster
Title
Shame
AKA
--
Year of Film
2011
Director
Steve McQueen
Starring
Michael Fassbender, Hannah Ware, James Badge Dale, Nicole Beharie, Alex Manette, Hannah Ware
Origin of Film
UK
Genre(s) of Film
Michael Fassbender, Hannah Ware, James Badge Dale, Nicole Beharie, Alex Manette, Hannah Ware,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2011
Designer
Mark Carroll
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 40"
SS or DS
DS
Tagline
--

A simple yet striking design on this poster for Shame, director Steve McQueen‘s 2011 portrait of a sex addict in New York City. Starring Michael Fassbender as Brandon, a 30-something office worker whose regimented diet of erotic activity is thrown into disarray with the arrival of his estranged and emotionally disturbed younger sister, Sissy (Carey Mulligan). Fassbender’s performance is something to behold and was certainly up there with the best of 2011 and McQueen cemented himself as a director of note, this having followed on from his stunning debut film Hunger (2008). It’s worth noting that this is the only poster in my collection that features an NC-17 rating.

The designer of this poster is a freelance American designer called Mark Carroll, who has worked on a number of other excellent posters for recent films including Tree of Life and Martha Marcy May Marlene. I’ve struggled to find much out about the man himself – I don’t believe he has website, for example – but IMPAwards has a gallery of some of his other designs. If anyone has any more information about him, and other posters that he’s worked on, please get in touch.

The Descent / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

The Crow / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Taxi to the Dark Side / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Taxi to the Dark Side
AKA
--
Year of Film
2007
Director
Alex Gibney
Starring
N/A
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
N/A,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
2007
Designer
Cold Open
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27" x 39 15/16"
SS or DS
DS
NSS #
--
Tagline
In 2002, a young cab driver picked up a few passengers near his home in Afghanistan... He never returned.

Attack the Block / one sheet / advance / USA

02.04.14

Poster Poster

An excellent tag-line that recalls some of the best of the 1980s features on this advance one sheet for the American release of Attack the Block, a British action/sci-fi/comedy that also recalls some of the classic ‘gang of kids against an outside threat’ films of the same decade. Set on bonfire night on a south London council estate, the film starts with the mugging of a local nurse called Sam (Jodie Whittaker) by a gang of youths led by Moses (John Boyega in his first film role), which is interrupted by what seems to be a meteorite crashing into a nearby parked car. When they investigate the damage a bizarre creature jumps out and claws at one of the group before running into a nearby park. Sam runs away whilst the group pursue the creature before attacking and killing it.

After dragging the corpse back to their tower block, they take it up to the flat of local drug dealer Ron (Nick Frost) and stash it in his walk-in drug freezer, believing it has to be worth something, or at least make the gang famous. Shortly afterwards, a new shower of meteors falls over the surrounding area and the gang decides to head out to tackle the invaders. What they don’t anticipate is that the latest creatures to fall to earth are much bigger and more vicious than the first one, and the group end up fighting for their lives. Before long they meet up with Sam again and must deal with the police who are on the look out for the gang, plus the local drug kingpin and the creatures who seem to have an interest in the members of the group who attacked and killed the first creature.

The film cleverly plays with the idea of the much maligned and feared (by the middle class) ‘hoodies’ and makes them the heroes of the story. The dialogue is excellent and frequently laugh out loud, although you’d expect nothing less from Joe Cornish. The creature effects are also noteworthy and cleverly blend skilled movement choreography and full-body prosthetics with CGI to make them pretty unique movie monsters. If you’re a fan of Edgar Wright’s films I highly recommend watching Attack the Block, assuming you’ve not done so already.

This poster was created by the prolific design studio Empire Design who have been working on posters and other film marketing material for 18 years, including for the James Bond films since Casino Royale (2006). To see the other posters that were designed by Empire in the Film on Paper collection click here.

We Need to Talk About Kevin / one sheet / USA

25.03.15

Poster Poster

A striking design features on this US one sheet for the release of the 2011 adaptation of Lionel Shriver‘s best-selling 2003 novel We Need to Talk About Kevin. The film rights were acquired by BBC Films in 2005 so it took producers several years to bring the story to screen. Scottish director Lynne Ramsay (Ratcatcher, Morvern Callar) was attached to the project early on and went through several script revisions before filming began, with one of the latter ones apparently used to help bring down the production budget.

With the story unfolding anachronically using flashbacks, the film stars Tilda Swinton as Eva Khatchadourian, the mother of Kevin (Ezra Miller who has committed a high-school massacre and is in prison. Eva, who was once a successful travel writer, is shown to be working at travel agents in a mall and living in a modest house near the prison allowing her to visit Kevin. The flashback sequences show how Eva struggled to adapt to being a mother and the effect this had on her son as he grows up, including some heart-rending scenes showing how Kevin cried incessantly as a baby.

The relationship between Eva and her husband Franklin (John C. Reilly) and daughter Celia (Ashley Gerasimovich) are also shown to be strained, and as he ages Kevin’s behaviour becomes more worrying. Eva begins to fear that her son is taking pleasure in hurting others and the film culminates in the massacre, which is not shown in detail but is nevertheless very chilling. The film received mostly positive reviews and was chosen by film critic Mark Kermode as his best film of 2011. Swinton was rightfully nominated for several awards for her performance

The poster design is credited to P+A and Mojo. P+A stands for Percival + Associates and their official site is currently under construction, but their extensive portfolio of film and TV poster work can be seen on IMPAwards. It appears that the company has been designing posters since 2005 and I have the set of Brick posters that they produced in 2006 in the Film on Paper collection. It appears that they collaborated with Mojo on multiple posters up until 2012, as can be seen on Mojo’s IMPAwards page. No further posters have been credited to Mojo since that year and their website URL now redirects to Eyestorm Productions, which is described as a full-service creative agency, apparently focused on video work. I can only assume they no longer work on film posters as such and that P+A handle all print work now.

Red Scorpion / one sheet / USA

15.07.15

Poster Poster
Title
Red Scorpion
AKA
--
Year of Film
1988
Director
Joseph Zito
Starring
Dolph Lundgren, M. Emmet Walsh, Al White, T.P. McKenna, Carmen Argenziano, Alex Colon, Brion James, Ruben Nthodi
Origin of Film
South Africa | USA | Namibia
Genre(s) of Film
Dolph Lundgren, M. Emmet Walsh, Al White, T.P. McKenna, Carmen Argenziano, Alex Colon, Brion James, Ruben Nthodi,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1988
Designer
Kaiser Creative
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 40 14/16"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
They think they control him. Think again.

Directed by Joseph Zito, a man with only 9 films under his belt, including a couple of Chuck Norris titles and the notorious slasher The Prowler, Red Scorpion was the second film to be headlined by the Swedish action star Dolph Lundgren. After earning degrees in chemical engineering, Lundgren won a couple of European championships in the martial art of Karate and eventually landed a job as a bodyguard for the singer and actress Grace Jones. The pair soon began a relationship and when he accompanied Jones during the filming of A View to a Kill she suggested he try out for a minor role in the film. This appearance helped him land the memorable role of the Russian boxer Ivan Drago in Rocky IV and then in 1987 he played He-Man in the ill-advised live-action film Masters of the Universe. Since then he has featured in over 60 films, mostly in the action genre.

Red Scorpion was produced by the disgraced former American lobbyist Jack Abramoff who was sentenced to jail in 2006 for mail fraud, conspiracy to bribe public officials, and tax evasion, all related to his involvement in lobbying for American Indian tribes and casinos. Before his career as a lobbyist, Abramoff spent 10 years in Hollywood as a producer and developed the screenplay for Red Scorpion along with his brother Robert, a more prolific producer who is still working in the industry today. Red Scorpion was filmed in Swaziland and the production became embroiled in the South African apartheid situation at the time, allegedly receiving some funding from the government as part of efforts to undermine the movement. The film suffered multiple delays and ultimately ended up about 8 million dollars over budget.

Dolph appears as Nikolai Petrovitch Radchenko, a Soviet Spetsnaz agent who is sent to a fictional African country to assassinate the leader of a large anti-communist rebel group. In order to get near to his target he gets involved in a bar brawl and is arrested and placed in a cell with a rebel commander. After gaining the man’s trust, the pair escape and end up at the rebel’s main hideout. He is met with distrust by most of the group and his attempt to assassinate the leader during the night results in his capture. After he ends up back in Soviet hands he is tortured and disgraced by his commanders, but manages to escape from an interrogation chamber and ends up in the desert where he is rescued by native bushmen. He learns about their customs and way of life, discovering that the peaceful tribe continues to be attacked by the Soviet forces. Radchenko is later given a ceremonial brand in the shape of a scorpion. Eventually he joins the rebel forces for an attack on the base where the corrupt Soviet commanders are based.

This poster was designed by the Los Angeles-based Kaiser Creative who worked on a number of film posters over the years. IMPAwards has a gallery of many of their posters. I’ve been unable to determine who is responsible for the artwork so if anyone has any ideas please get in touch.

Pan’s Labyrinth / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Amazing Grace And Chuck / one sheet / USA

18.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Amazing Grace And Chuck
AKA
La Protesta Del Silenzio [The silent protest] (Italy)
Year of Film
1987
Director
Mike Newell
Starring
Joshua Zuehlke, Alex English, William L. Petersen, Jamie Lee Curtis, Gregory Peck, Michael Bowen
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Joshua Zuehlke, Alex English, William L. Petersen, Jamie Lee Curtis, Gregory Peck, Michael Bowen,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1987
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
27" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
870033
Tagline
A boy raised a question, a man answered and the whole world paid attention.

Child’s Play / one sheet / USA

18.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Child's Play
AKA
De pop (Netherlands) | Chucky - Die Mörderpuppe (West Germany)
Year of Film
1988
Director
Tom Holland
Starring
Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon, Alex Vincent, Brad Dourif
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon, Alex Vincent, Brad Dourif,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1988
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
26 7/8" x 40"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
Something's moved in with the Barclay family, and so has terror.

Dark City / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Elephant / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Elephant / B2 / Japan

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Friday the 13th / one sheet / re-release / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Friday the 13th
AKA
A Long Night at Camp Blood (USA - working title)
Year of Film
1980
Director
Sean S. Cunningham
Starring
Betsy Palmer, Adrienne King, Harry Crosby, Laurie Bartram, Mark Nelson, Jeannine Taylor, Robbi Morgan, Kevin Bacon
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Betsy Palmer, Adrienne King, Harry Crosby, Laurie Bartram, Mark Nelson, Jeannine Taylor, Robbi Morgan, Kevin Bacon,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
Re-release (GCIU version)
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1980s
Designer
Spiros Angelikas
Artist
Alex Ebel
Size (inches)
27 1/8" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
800073
Tagline
They were warned...They are doomed...And on Friday the 13th, nothing will save them

Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan / one sheet / teaser / recalled / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan / one sheet / teaser / recalled / sticker / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

I, Robot / one sheet / advance / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Invasion USA / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster

Lady In White / one sheet / USA

17.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
Lady In White
AKA
Scarlatti, il thriller [Scarlatti, the thriller] (Italy)
Year of Film
1988
Director
Frank LaLoggia
Starring
Lukas Haas, Len Cariou, Alex Rocco, Katherine Helmond, Jason Presson, Renata Vanni, Angelo Bertolini
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Lukas Haas, Len Cariou, Alex Rocco, Katherine Helmond, Jason Presson, Renata Vanni, Angelo Bertolini,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
--
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1988
Designer
Unknown
Artist
--
Size (inches)
27" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
The year is 1962. The place is Willowpoint Falls. Nobody talks about what happened in the school cloakroom 10 years ago. Now, in the dead of night, Frankie Scarlatti is going to find out why.

A Nymphoid Barbarian in Dinosaur Hell / one sheet / USA

18.05.11

Poster Poster
Title
A Nymphoid Barbarian In Dinosaur Hell
AKA
--
Year of Film
1990
Director
Brett Piper
Starring
Paul Guzzi, Linda Corwin, Alex Pirnie
Origin of Film
USA
Genre(s) of Film
Paul Guzzi, Linda Corwin, Alex Pirnie,
Type of Poster
One sheet
Style of Poster
-
Origin of Poster
USA
Year of Poster
1990
Designer
Unknown
Artist
Unknown
Size (inches)
27 1/16" x 41"
SS or DS
SS
NSS #
--
Tagline
The pre-historic and the pre-pubescent, together at last!

Pan’s Labyrinth / one sheet / special / UK

06.07.11

Poster Poster

Guillermo Del Toro’s sublime, fantastic fairy tale Pan’s Labyrinth almost had an official cinema poster by the great Drew Struzan, that is until the studio suits had their way. The poster you see here is from a special screening in London and the design was never actually used as a cinema poster in any country. The final American Pan’s Labyrinth one sheet can be seen here.

The full story of how Struzan and Del Toro worked together on the poster can be found in the fantastic book ‘The Art of Drew Struzan’, which is an absolute must-buy for anyone who who has even a passing interest in Drew’s work (it’s currently only £16.49 on Amazon UK and $23.07 on Amazon.com). The stories associated with each of the artworks are a fascinating insight into what it’s like to work with directors and studios during the creation of a film poster.

These excerpts are taken from the Pan’s Labyrinth section of the book.

Drew on the completion of the artwork:

Then the shit hit the fan – the studio never used the painting. It did wind up on a special vinyl issue of the soundtrack album though.

Once the image had been released online there were many who couldn’t believe that Drew’s artwork wasn’t used for the final poster.

They were having a press conference in Europe, and a reporter actually stood up and asked one of the suits, “How come you didn’t use Struzan’s artwork for the poster?” … The suit’s reply was: “We didn’t use it because it looks too much like art.”

That statement from the studio representative says it all really. It seems like they genuinely believe that cinema-goers won’t respond to illustrated posters any more and that the photoshopped monstrosities so prevalent today are the only way to sell films successfully.

This particular example of the poster was obtained from a very established and trusted poster dealer that had bought them from a contact in London, who managed to secure a few after the event had finished. I’m assuming it was for the UK premiere or a large press screening, but I’d love to know for sure so please get in touch if you have any more details. I’m certain it’s not a bootleg poster as it measures the standard size for one sheets, is printed on decent paper and the details are sharp when viewed up close.