Alfred Hitchcock Contemporary Poster Redux September 11, 2012

Few film directors can ever hope to live up to the legacy left behind by Alfred Hitchcock. A cultural icon, the emblematic imagery used in Hitchcock's films has affected artists across a wide range of media. Among the inspired is Enzo Lo Re, a young illustrator and animator originally hailing from Siciliy, currently living and working in Milan. Lo Re recently gave some of Hitchcock's most infamous titles a twenty-first century makeover with a set of minimalistic posters. MINI Space recently caught up with the emerging artist to pick his brain and learn about his creative process and the inspiration behind his Hitchcock series.

 

MINI Space (MS): Your posters have a very iconic feel. As a graphic artist, how did Hitchcock's exciting thematic titles like Vertigo and Psycho translate in your designs? Enzo Lo Re (ELR): The method of Hitchcock is schematic and rigid, nothing is left to chance! In every movie you can see an unbridled love for detail: storytelling, the use of light, poster design, even to the choice of the cast. Many of his films are considered to be strong points in the world of visual communication. In Psycho or Vertigo, for example, the title sequence and opening credits (from Saul Bass, one of my favorite designers) reveal a fairly ambiguous ending. I depicted his approach by creating a brief summary of all the films without explicitly revealing the ending. I kept my visual concept consistent: minimalism, few colors with a subtle vintage look! MS: The posters are indeed effective. Was it hard to take such elaborate landmark pieces of cinema and slim them down to such simple imagery? ELR: In fact it was not easy to deal with these masterpieces of cinema. I tried to communicate my impressions of the movies; after a short brainstorming for each film, I started to work. I hadn’t planed exactly how to do it, I just let it flow and after the first drafts, I focused on every poster individually. MS: Apart from cinema, where do you find inspiration for your work? ELR: I am generally inspired by various interests: graphic design, film, art and music. But I believe that the effective inspirations come from our surroundings, the people that we meet and the situations that add to our perspective. With the technological era that we are living in nowadays, many artists and designers simply derive their inspiration from what Google provides them in relation to a few keywords. However, visual communication is an integral part of our lives! If you can absorb what is around you it will automatically flow into your work, whether you are a designer, a doctor, a cook, etc. MS: Are you planning on making any more Hitchcock posters? How about other filmmakers? ELR: I'm currently working on a series of posters on the entire filmography of "Pixar" because I really love their work and their way of conveying emotions. It will be rather complicated but definitely rewarding! I also plan to make in the near future a series for every great director. MINI Space is dedicated to giving budding artists a minute in the spotlight. You can adorn your own walls with Enzo Lo Re’s Hithcock prints by clicking here. Saul Bass' Title Sequences for Alfred Hitchcock
Coming down with a case of cinephilia? Does the silver screen inspire your creative work? Check out this fantastic 2012 Vimeo Award winner "A History of the Title Sequence": A History of the Title Sequence
For more great shorts, head over to MINI Space’s coverage of the 2012 Vimeo Awards.