Concept Artist Matthew Savage To Make A 'Darker And More Sinister' Feature Film

Concept artist Matthew Savage has done some incredible concept art for Doctor Who, The Dark Knight and other projects.

I thought I'd feature some work he did for the film he wrote and directed called Reign of Death(2009). It's short, but beautiful.

Synopsis: "In a 1930s vision of the future and gumshoe chases down a robotic murder suspect."
 

There was some talk about it becoming a feature film, but nothing since then. I think it would be awesome.

To see more of Matthew Savage's work, check out his site at http://www.mattsav.co.uk/.
[Image Source: Facebook]

"Google is a godsend." Artist Syd Mead Tells NPR

Blade Runner "Curb Scene" Concept Art by Syd Mead

Syd Mead is a concept artist and designer for movies like Minority Report, Tron and Blade Runner. In an interview with NPR, the veteran artist describes his approach to producing futuristic concept art and the future of technology.

Describing himself as a "visual futurist" that starting with a script he develops his designs with the director and production designer. His greatest tool these days is the search engine "Google."

"Google is a godsend." Mead says, "You download different research tracts on that specific subject and find out that we're implanting cameras in people's eyes now,

"They're working on artificial nanoscale retinas. And so you start with that technology leap, or possibility, and then you design around that. To me, science fiction is reality ahead of schedule."

Talking about things as diverse as Iris scanners, like the ones in Minority Report he says "If something is a good idea, then it will probably come true, either because of economic pressures, or just simply invention. Technology tends to climb on its own past accomplishments. If you've solved three or four problems, you can probably solve eight more."

Its interesting to hear how he uses current technology to drive his art and create realism.

Overall, it's a good short article and well worth hearing from one of the premiere artists in the industry.

Head over to NPR to read the article and check out amazing work on Syd Mead's website http://sydmead.com.

What do you think? Can an artist predict the future using Google? 
 [Image Source: http://www.wired.com]

Watch Spider-Man Get Evicted in Sam Raimi 'Spider-Man 4' Storyboards

Spider-Man 4 probably would have been horrid based on Spider-Man 3 and the various ideas director Sam Raimi had in mind, but one thing's for sure. There would have been drama.

The film would have cast John Malkovich as the villain Vulture, and Anne Hathaway as Black Cat or the Vultress based on who you talked to.

Negotiations between the studio and Raimi broke down after they couldn't get a script in time to meet the release schedule. Supposedly Sam "hated" the script and wanted rewrites.

In the storyboards below, by Dave Lowrey, we see Peter Parker (Tobey McGuire) coming home to discover that the building he was renting has been condemned. All kinds of dramatic questions come to mind: Does this mean Peter's homeless? Will he have to move in with his Aunt May or Mary Jane? Seeing Peter on the curb is really moving.

Check out more of his work at http://davelowery.net/.

Do you think this would have been a good scene? What would Spider-Man do if he was homeless?

Top Ten Amazing Concept Art of 'X-Men: First Class' (2011)

There are many talented artists who worked on X-Men: First Class, and while I haven't seen all the artwork, these are my favorites.

Official plot synopsis: "X-Men: First Class charts the epic beginning of the X-Men saga, and reveals a secret history of famous global events. Before mutants had revealed themselves to the world, and before Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Not archenemies, they were instead at first the closest of friends, working together with other Mutants (some familiar, some new), to stop Armageddon. In the process, a grave rift between them opened, which began the eternal war between Magneto’s Brotherhood and Professor X’s X-Men."

'Back to the Future' Concept Art Let's You Wear the Amazing Nike Air McFlys of 2015 Today!

So, Nike released their first generation of the Nike Air Mags that were featured in the film Back to the Future II (1989) and, after reading an interview with Bob Gale, I went hunting for concept art.

Once you actually compare the final product with the designs, it kind of falls flat.

While the shoes are incredibly authentic reproductions of the movie shoes, it would have been nice if they'd designed them as Tinker had originally drawn, with accents and much bolder styling. Maybe next year. Still hyper-cool though.

The Nike "Air Mags," (or McFlys) named after the logo on the back, were originally supposed to be "Slamball Shoes." There was a scene were Marty plays a futuristic game of racquetball called Slamball, but it was cut because of the cost of building a huge racquetball court.

Sneaker News had a post on the eBay sale of the original prop Michael J. Fox wore in the film. That seller had a photocopy of the original design drawing by Nike's legendary shoe designer Tinker Hatfield (the designer of all of the Air Jordans).

Nike had some concept art as well, but it's not very clear.

Were these shoes supposed to have wheels? Maybe they could sue the "Heelies?"

Here we see Marty hanging upside down in his magnetic shoes.

The whole thing is for a great cause.

Nike announced that 1500 pairs of these shoes will be auctioned on eBay, nikemag.eBay.com, for a starting bid of $3,300 with all net proceeds going directly to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research. The auction ends on September 18 and 150 pairs will be posted on eBay per day for 10 days.

"We wanted to translate the excitement people have for the 'greatest shoe never made' and for the Back to the Future into positive action,” said Mark Parker, CEO of Nike. "But the long term objective is to raise awareness so the Foundation can achieve their goal of eradicating Parkinson’s disease."

Some of the illustrators on the original film were David Jonas and Martin A. Kline.

Would you wear a pair of these amazing shoes?

'The Troll Hunters' Playful But Terrifying Concept Art

The concept art for a Norweigian mockmentary on trolls looks cute and cartoony until you see them in the film.

Synopsis: The government says there’s nothing to worry about – it’s just a problem with bears making trouble in the mountains and forests of Norway. But local hunters don’t believe it – and neither do a trio of college students who want to find out the truth. Armed with a video camera, they trail a mysterious “poacher,” who wants nothing to do with them. However, their persistence lands them straight in the path of the objects of his pursuits: trolls. They soon find themselves documenting every move of this grizzled, unlikely hero – the trollhunter – risking their lives to uncover the secrets of creatures only thought to exist in fairy tales

I've combined descriptions from thehollywoodnews and director André Øvredal's comments on Empire.

“I wanted it to be grounded in something Norwegian,” says Øvredal. “And the documentary style was to maximise the potential, because I realised that I can’t do a film like Jurassic Park in Norway. So the first thing I told the producer after I pitched the idea was, ‘We’re going to shoot it as a documentary.’ He immediately saw how that was going to work.”

The tone of the film treads somewhere between horror, comedy and adventure, landing somewhere in unmissable territory. “I didn’t want to make it a comedy, per se, and I didn’t want to make a horror movie where I would alienate the people who went there for an adventure film. I definitely intended it to have a fairy-tale quality.”

"Our artist, Håvard S. Johansen, was working for months on how the trolls were going to look. This is one where we were discussing how far from Norwegian troll mythology do we dare go? This was too far off, but it was fun to play around with."

The Single Image That Sold 'Cowboys and Aliens' (2011)

There's a great story in MTV that told how the film and graphic novel Cowboys and Aliens started with the single image of a cowboy shooting at a spaceship.

Alan Gasmer, an agent at WMA, relates how, while reviewing concept art in pitch meetings, they first recognized the potential of "Cowboys & Aliens."

"[Rosenberg would] flip over a poster, and then another and another. When he got to the third one, I said, what's that?

He said, it's 'Cowboys & Aliens.'

I said, that's your movie.

Even though he had nothing written down, I grabbed Rob [Carlson, another WMA agent], who pitched it to his client Steve Oedekerk [director of 'Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls,' and writer of 'The Nutty Professor']. Steve immediately said he was in, and that he would figure out the movie. We went out basically with an illustration and Steve, and we had five offers right away from Disney, Fox, Sony, Universal and DreamWorks until the latter two joined together and bought it. That's how business was done back then."

It is a pretty cool visual.

An alien takes out a cowboy on horseback.

Cowboy outfitted with alien weaponry.

Futuristic Indians



What do you think? Would you have bought onto this movie with just the images above?

The Dinosaurs of 'Terra Nova' Are 'Mangy' Says Jason O'Mara

The dinosaurs of Terra Nova, the upcoming science-fiction show are realistically mangy according to Jason O'Mara who plays the father.

I’ve seen concept art of our dinosaurs and some of the raptors are like wild coyotes. They’re mangy and a little crazed, almost like they’re really, really hungry, or they’re methadone-addicts. Our dinosaurs have a lot of personality, and they’re extra vicious.

Sounds pretty good. Most of the time dinosaurs have a couple of scratches and maybe a rip in the skin, but this takes it to the next level.

Synopsis:

In the year 2149 the world is dying.  The planet is overdeveloped, overcrowded and overpolluted.  With the majority of plant and animal life extinct, devotion to science has brought mankind to the brink of destruction, but has also provided its only hope for salvation.  Knowing there is no way to reverse the damage to the planet, a coalition of scientists has managed to open up a fracture in the space-time continuum, creating a portal to prehistoric Earth.  This doorway leads to an amazing world, one that allows for a last-ditch effort to save the human race… possibly changing the future by correcting the mistakes of the past.

The series centers on the Shannon family as they join the tenth pilgrimage of settlers to TERRA NOVA, the first colony of humans in this second chance for civilization.  JIM SHANNON a devoted father with a checkered past, guides his family through this new land of limitless beauty, mystery and terror.  Jim’s wife, ELISABETH SHANNON, is a trauma surgeon chosen through a global lottery as a new addition to Terra Nova’s medical team.  JOSH SHANNON is their son, mourning the girl he left behind, as he’s torn between two role models – his father and the charismatic COMMANDER FRANK TAYLOR, the leader of the settlement, and the heroic first pioneer through the time portal.  MADDY SHANNON, Jim and Elizabeth’s teen daughter, is as independent and adventurous as her parents, but her distrust of authority soon leads her on a dangerous path.

In addition to blue skies, rolling rivers, and lush vegetation, TERRA NOVA offers new opportunities and fresh beginnings to its recent arrivals, but the Shannons have brought with them a familial secret that may threaten their citizen ship in this utopia.  Additionally these adventurers soon discover that this healthy, vibrant world is not as idyllic as it initially appears.  The areas surrounding Terra Nova are filled with dangerous dinosaurs, and other prehistoric threats, as well as external forces that may be intent on destroying this new world before it begins.

But perhaps even more threatening than what lies outside the protective walls is the Shannons’ realization that something sinister may be happening inside TERRA NOVA as not everyone on this mission has the same intentions of how to best save mankind.

Concept artist Richard S. Lee is working on the Steven Spielberg-produced show coming in September 26th.

Via Collider