LITTLE WHITE LIES - RESEARCH

I buy this magazine regularly and love it so this brief stood out to me...The covers are always amazing, always by a different illustrator and in completely different style so its very free to design...

KEYWORDS FROM THE BRIEF:

• LITTLE WHITE LIES


• THE CHURCH OF LONDON


• COVER


• ILLUSTRATION


• MAIN CHARACTER


• FILMS OF 2011


• PORTRAIT


• DRIVE


• BLACK SWAN


• SUPER 8


• THE TREE OF LIFE


• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY


• VISUAL SETTING


• CULTURAL BACKGROUND


• KEY VISUAL IMAGES FROM FILM


• ANY MEDIUM


• TITLE OF FILM - OWN TYPOGRAPHIC STYLE


• OLD TYPEFACE OR HAND LETTERING


• ADVENTUROUS FILM FANS


• INDEPENDENT MOVIE MAGAZINE


• CUTTING EDGE WRITING


• MUSIC


• ART


• POLITICS


• POP CULTURE


• BOLD


• BEAUTIFUL


• UNIQUE


• MAGAZINE ON A MISSION

The brief gives you a choice of their 5 top films of 2011 to pick from, they include;

• Drive


• Black Swan


• The Tree Of Life


• Super 8


• Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

I have seen all of these films! First choice would be Drive, second The Tree Of Life. I think that it would be important to get some kind of subliminal message into the illustration without being to over the top. I would want to watch the 2 films again to try and think of something that could work well with a portrait. The Tree Of Life definitely has MILLIONS of concept ideas for that! Although it could be very tricky to bring out in a portrait.

As you can see from the images below, every cover is completely unique, there is no consistency from cover to cover/film to film. This is what I love about this brief...

Firstly I need to research previous Little White Lies covers and see the different styles and if I can pick out any messages within the illustrations...

Black Swan has already been done... A beautiful delicate illustration of Nataile Portman as the main character 'The Black Swan' Delicately drawn with falling feathers around her face the LARGE TEXT sitting over the image gives it the dark, striking feel it needs...

The below cover is for the Pedro Almodovar film Volver. I love this cover, the blood dripping from her eye brings in the dark side of the film. I think it could have had more impact without any other colour on the page though... Although the film is full of tremendous colour itself so maybe not. I like the text being part of the actual portrait rather than sitting on top or the background, using it in that warped style also enhances the huge body of her dark hair....

This is England cover... A brilliant illustration of the main character Sean. This differs from the others by showing some background imagery, although the focus is all on the portrait...I love the text in the label maker/punk sort of style, perfect with the graffiti background...

The Road issue below fits with the film perfectly.... Bleak! The illustration really brings out the characters detailed emotions. Leaving the background this misty, bleak paint leaves all focus on the portrait... It kind of makes me want to peel of the Little White Lies title and reveal the whole thing.

The Control cover takes a dark approach to the film. The film itself is shot in black and white so an obvious choice to produce the illustration in black and white, although even if this film was in colour it would make sense to produce such a deep, dark film without colour.

The Darjeeling Limited issue below is pretty much just a portrait, it doesn't seem to have a hidden message or anything but the viewer can get the look and feel of the film from the lovely turquoise blue background (a key colour in the film) Also the bindi on Owen Wilson's face brings out the hippy type vibe of 'finding himself' I really like the silkscreen type style of the face itself...

The below cover for The Marie Antoinette issue really brings out the style of the film with the over the top illustration style and colour. The airbrushed cheeks, bright pink lips, turquoise blue and hair and bright hair accessories against the dark black background work really well and lets the viewer picture the exaggerated style of the film. The handwritten, swirly type reminds me of elements within the film - for example ornate, gold, detailed furniture. I like the fact that they have included other text other than just the film title, I would want to do this if I choose this brief...

The attack the block cover stands out from the rest... Its almost a comic book style which I think is a good idea. I find this illustration doesn't give out the right impression on the film though, it seems very dark and almost like a gangster film or something, but it's meant to be a tongue and cheek comedy...

The shame issue... I love this cover, I have recently seen the film and can piece them together perfectly... The character is very messed up and broken, this illustration seems like he has been put back together like a puzzle. The type is news paper cuttings which again gives the feel of the illustration being stuck back together. I think I prefer the covers to only show the portrait and no background, especially when there seems to be a message within the portrait itself...

The education cover is done in pop art style, very sixties, the film is set in the 60s so works very well... The first cover I've seen with an actual image from the film in it. A powerful still from the film could work very well if it's edited right... The handrawn typography fits in with the title and story 'the education' classic handwritten schoolgirl type...

There's already been a Drive issue! Lovely illustration, but I've studied this for a while and cant find anything hiding in there! It would have been a good idea to put something in the reflection in the sunglasses.... Which I am now thinking I could do for my cover if I decide to go with this... The type is my favourite element in this cover... A very clever idea having it on a lit sign on the side of the road... Very American, fits perfectly with the feel of the film... Although I do love the script type used for actually advertising the film, it is iconic of the film and would've been nice to re-create it... a cool cover for a cool film...

Studying a handful of Little White covers in more detail has really helped me with ideas for overall style and type choices... Seeing the completely different variety has also made me feel quite free with what I could produce.