Need idea for minimalist poster for "Harold & Maude"
January 14, 2011 12:00 AM Subscribe
Help me get an idea for a "minimalist" poster for Harold & Maude
I really like these minimalist movie posters. (If you want to see more examples, just Google.) Many of them are very clever.
I would like to try and make one for a theatrical production of "Harold & Maude." I have a few ideas, but none of them really clinch it for me. I'd be very grateful for any bright ideas!
I really like these minimalist movie posters. (If you want to see more examples, just Google.) Many of them are very clever.
I would like to try and make one for a theatrical production of "Harold & Maude." I have a few ideas, but none of them really clinch it for me. I'd be very grateful for any bright ideas!
Use a simple "chalk outline" man like the one on the Anatomy of a Murder poster, but use a blue background to make it seem like it's a body floating in a pool.
posted by meadowlark lime at 12:42 AM on January 14, 2011
posted by meadowlark lime at 12:42 AM on January 14, 2011
Maude's yellow umbrella standing out among all the black ones.
posted by cazoo at 1:05 AM on January 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
posted by cazoo at 1:05 AM on January 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
God, I love that movie.
On the subject of the flowers/gravestones thing, perhaps a large, sunflower-like flower where the petals are gravestone shaped? One of the petals can have fallen off and be down in the corner on the "ground". A bit cheesy, true. But then, the story is as well.
posted by Mizu at 1:51 AM on January 14, 2011
On the subject of the flowers/gravestones thing, perhaps a large, sunflower-like flower where the petals are gravestone shaped? One of the petals can have fallen off and be down in the corner on the "ground". A bit cheesy, true. But then, the story is as well.
posted by Mizu at 1:51 AM on January 14, 2011
You could also combine his hearse or his hangman's noose (his first staged death) with one of the flowers.
posted by salvia at 2:12 AM on January 14, 2011
posted by salvia at 2:12 AM on January 14, 2011
Do you know Olly Moss, who redesigns movie posters for Empire? I love his work. Absolute genius. Maybe he can inspire you.
Funereal symbolism is an obvious starting point, but I think I'd be tempted to focus on the suicide theme -- a car going over a cliff in the style of a UK road warning, for example, could be funny; a bottle of pills would make for a more dramatic tone.
posted by londonmark at 2:26 AM on January 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Funereal symbolism is an obvious starting point, but I think I'd be tempted to focus on the suicide theme -- a car going over a cliff in the style of a UK road warning, for example, could be funny; a bottle of pills would make for a more dramatic tone.
posted by londonmark at 2:26 AM on January 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Outline of Harold and Maude on the police motorcycle with Harold holding a shovel.
posted by hworth at 4:10 AM on January 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by hworth at 4:10 AM on January 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Seconding the noose, but maybe on a bright yellow background.
posted by tomboko at 4:39 AM on January 14, 2011
posted by tomboko at 4:39 AM on January 14, 2011
What about:
A hearse with just married in the window and cans tied to the bumper
posted by Flood at 6:27 AM on January 14, 2011
A hearse with just married in the window and cans tied to the bumper
posted by Flood at 6:27 AM on January 14, 2011
A samuri sword and an outline of suit and tie.
I'd personally like to see something of his mom's swim cap in the blue pool.
posted by littleflowers at 6:40 AM on January 14, 2011
I'd personally like to see something of his mom's swim cap in the blue pool.
posted by littleflowers at 6:40 AM on January 14, 2011
jsturgill: "You need an iconic scene from the film to riff on--like the gravestone/flower bit .
doublehappy: "Perhaps a silhouette with a banjo at the top of a cliff"
I came here to suggest the flower scene, but I'm also really digging the visual that doublehappy suggested. Maybe a combination of the two would work, like replacing the cliff with a silhouette of a sunflower with Harold and the banjo on a petal tip. Or having him standing on a cliff/pile of sunflower petals.
And I agree that the movie is all about that scene. Personally, I wouldn't focus on the symbols of death:
posted by Room 641-A at 6:44 AM on January 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
doublehappy: "Perhaps a silhouette with a banjo at the top of a cliff"
I came here to suggest the flower scene, but I'm also really digging the visual that doublehappy suggested. Maybe a combination of the two would work, like replacing the cliff with a silhouette of a sunflower with Harold and the banjo on a petal tip. Or having him standing on a cliff/pile of sunflower petals.
And I agree that the movie is all about that scene. Personally, I wouldn't focus on the symbols of death:
Maude: A lot of people enjoy being dead. But they are not dead, really. They're just backing away from life. Reach out. Take a chance. Get hurt even. But play as well as you can. Go team, go! Give me an "L". Give me an "I". Give me a "V". Give me an "E". L-I-V-E. LIVE! Otherwise, you got nothing to talk about in the locker room.Favorite. Movie. Ever.
posted by Room 641-A at 6:44 AM on January 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Oh, and YES, please post it to projects!
posted by Room 641-A at 6:48 AM on January 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Room 641-A at 6:48 AM on January 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
I like the idea of a flower with its head through a noose.
posted by hermitosis at 7:49 AM on January 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by hermitosis at 7:49 AM on January 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
A really minimalist outline of the two of them lying in bed while Harold is blowing bubbles.
posted by 8dot3 at 8:13 AM on January 14, 2011
posted by 8dot3 at 8:13 AM on January 14, 2011
The first image I think of is the Jaguar hearse going off the cliff. The second image is of Harold and Maude driving off with a tree in the back. :)
posted by jillithd at 8:40 AM on January 14, 2011
posted by jillithd at 8:40 AM on January 14, 2011
I love that movie too, but wouldn't use the Jag/hearse going off the cliff--that's sort of a spoiler for those who haven't seen the movie.
Love the idea of the flower in the hangman's noose.
posted by Sublimity at 8:45 AM on January 14, 2011
Love the idea of the flower in the hangman's noose.
posted by Sublimity at 8:45 AM on January 14, 2011
You could just have the outline of the charm Harold makes Maude at the carnival (I can't recall though if you see it clearly in the film when he's making it, I feel like it was a 4 leaf clover shape but the brain might be inventing that detail) - and do something typographically to highlight the movie title within what's stamped on the token ("HAROLD LOVES MAUDE"), i.e. by highlighting "Harold" and "Maude" in a different color and superimposing an ampersand over the "O" in "loves" in the same color but leaving the rest of the letters in "loves" the same background color as the token. Or, you know, something more clever I would come up with if I worked in Graphic Design instead of Quality Assurance.
posted by nanojath at 9:04 AM on January 14, 2011
posted by nanojath at 9:04 AM on January 14, 2011
The first image I think of is the Jaguar hearse going off the cliff.
me too.
You might be able to interpret that image as sort of top-down view of the hearse, with just a color change representing the line between the ground and the sky behind it.
posted by Prince_of_Cups at 9:30 AM on January 14, 2011
me too.
You might be able to interpret that image as sort of top-down view of the hearse, with just a color change representing the line between the ground and the sky behind it.
posted by Prince_of_Cups at 9:30 AM on January 14, 2011
Response by poster: holy cow, what great ideas. OK, I'm going to try this over the weekend; I'll follow up here. I DEFINITELY SHOULD HAVE NOTED -- My photoshop/indesign skills are pretty rudimentary. But I will take a stab at it, and hope for further feedback after I do.
Thanks everyone!!!!
- aj
posted by Alaska Jack at 9:44 AM on January 14, 2011
Thanks everyone!!!!
- aj
posted by Alaska Jack at 9:44 AM on January 14, 2011
To me, Harold blowing bubbles in bed is the iconic scene of that movie.
The graveyard/suicide/hearse scenes, while memorable, only give your audience half of the life/death conversation that Harold and Maude is about, probably the joy and black humor that make the story so lovable will be obscured behind the visceral impact of that very dark imagery. The bubbles, on the other hand, convey the message of fragile beauty, a perfect moment inexorably drifting towards its end, in an ultimately uplifting way. I think that's more true to the spirit of Harold and Maude.
I can't find an image of this online, there's a part where they "kidnap" a city tree and replant it in the forest. That might be good too.
posted by milk white peacock at 10:09 AM on January 14, 2011
The graveyard/suicide/hearse scenes, while memorable, only give your audience half of the life/death conversation that Harold and Maude is about, probably the joy and black humor that make the story so lovable will be obscured behind the visceral impact of that very dark imagery. The bubbles, on the other hand, convey the message of fragile beauty, a perfect moment inexorably drifting towards its end, in an ultimately uplifting way. I think that's more true to the spirit of Harold and Maude.
I can't find an image of this online, there's a part where they "kidnap" a city tree and replant it in the forest. That might be good too.
posted by milk white peacock at 10:09 AM on January 14, 2011
I'm going with the yellow umbrella in the sea of black. Perhaps with a sunflower painted on it.
posted by cereselle at 12:04 PM on January 14, 2011
posted by cereselle at 12:04 PM on January 14, 2011
Maude's Auschwitz tattoo.
posted by Dr.Pill at 2:16 PM on January 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Dr.Pill at 2:16 PM on January 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
My cover of the novel is a black background with an illustrated sunflower; the sunflower could easily be simplified.
The book came after the movie, but it's still pretty good.
posted by smirkette at 3:57 PM on January 14, 2011
The book came after the movie, but it's still pretty good.
posted by smirkette at 3:57 PM on January 14, 2011
Response by poster: Hi everyone, original poster checking back in.
So many great ideas! Unfortunately, I'm very limited by my rudimentary photoshop skillz. Here's a first draft: [jpg | psd] I would really like to somehow add in some of the suicide-implement imagery, like maybe a stick of dynamite going through the heart like an arrow, or something with a noose. But like I said, I'm not a graphic artist, and photoshop is harder than it looks!
If any graphic artists feels like chipping in on this, BE MY GUEST!! :^)
Oh, one more thing. The poster is not for the movie; it's for "Harold and Maude: A Play in Two Acts," which is slightly different than the movie. Different ending, for example -- no hearse going over a cliff.
In fact, I've never actually seen the movie. Don't worry -- I'm going to a screening tomorrow.
Anyway, critiques welcome!
- aj
posted by Alaska Jack at 11:08 PM on January 16, 2011
So many great ideas! Unfortunately, I'm very limited by my rudimentary photoshop skillz. Here's a first draft: [jpg | psd] I would really like to somehow add in some of the suicide-implement imagery, like maybe a stick of dynamite going through the heart like an arrow, or something with a noose. But like I said, I'm not a graphic artist, and photoshop is harder than it looks!
If any graphic artists feels like chipping in on this, BE MY GUEST!! :^)
Oh, one more thing. The poster is not for the movie; it's for "Harold and Maude: A Play in Two Acts," which is slightly different than the movie. Different ending, for example -- no hearse going over a cliff.
In fact, I've never actually seen the movie. Don't worry -- I'm going to a screening tomorrow.
Anyway, critiques welcome!
- aj
posted by Alaska Jack at 11:08 PM on January 16, 2011
Best answer: AJ, it looks nice. I have no background that would make that pronouncement partciularly meaningful, but there you go. The red is shockingly bright to me, and I wouldn't mind seeing it turned much darker. But the bias towards muted colors is strong within me, and brighter may well be better at catching the eye of passers by.
Did you ever see this? It was linked to on the blue a while back. I think it helps demonstrate how a good design is part of a process that sends feelers out in all directions. Not every experiment is successful, but every failure adds valuable insight into the next iteration.
If the goal is to create a decent poster for the play, I think you can call it a day and be happy. But if you wanted to improve your art, why not take three or four different ideas and try them out, then work more on the one(s) that work the best for you, combine them, try to express the same idea different ways, etc.? Just a thought.
posted by jsturgill at 2:45 PM on January 18, 2011
Did you ever see this? It was linked to on the blue a while back. I think it helps demonstrate how a good design is part of a process that sends feelers out in all directions. Not every experiment is successful, but every failure adds valuable insight into the next iteration.
If the goal is to create a decent poster for the play, I think you can call it a day and be happy. But if you wanted to improve your art, why not take three or four different ideas and try them out, then work more on the one(s) that work the best for you, combine them, try to express the same idea different ways, etc.? Just a thought.
posted by jsturgill at 2:45 PM on January 18, 2011
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Seems like it has a strong visual element that lends itself to this approach, and it carries a good bit of the spirit and message of the film. Post it to projects when you finish!
posted by jsturgill at 12:14 AM on January 14, 2011 [4 favorites]