Batman 1989 Batwing Concept Art and Storyboards By David Russell

In one of the climactic battle scenes for the movie Batman (1989) the Joker faces off against Batman in his plane, the Batwing. David Russell (Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Red Tails) worked on the film helping to design and doing storyboards.

He has some great quotes in an interview with The Movie Blog, but there's one point he makes about working with Tim Burton.
In the early stages Burton was trying to connect the classic Batman with the Dark Knight. It did seem that he wasn’t very familiar with the character. Burton is not a particularly adept storyteller, but his visual signature is truly amazing. From the outset, Tim wanted Batman to be a very dark film. I started out designing in pencil, then black, but Tim kept wanting an even darker style, of imagery, so at the very end of my assignment, I switched to white pencil and black paper.









The scene as it was filmed is below.


See more of David Russell's portfolio at http://www.dynamicimagesdr.com.

What do you think of the illustrations? Do you remember the Batwing?

Comments

  1. Jeremy [Retro]June 18, 2012 at 5:25 AM

    I just watched this movie over the weekend... it's funny when the new movie comes out in like a month I find myself watching all the previous movies. Kinda to get worked up... great post!

    Jeremy [Retro-Zombie]
    Retro-Zombie: Art and Words

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    1. Maurice MitchellJune 23, 2012 at 8:13 PM

      Jeremy, that's a great idea. I might so that myself.

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  2. Liesel K. HillJune 18, 2012 at 6:39 AM

    Yeah, that's cool! I'm not a particularly big Burton fan because I prefer story over imagery, but I agree that the dark images can be truly amazing! Thanks for sharing them! :D

    musingsonfantasia.blogspot.com

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    1. Maurice MitchellJune 23, 2012 at 8:15 PM

      Leisel, not a Tim Burton fan? Hard to believe. ;) . I like story myself, but I love his imagery.

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  3. storyboardistaJune 18, 2012 at 8:45 AM

    Great blog and fab post!
    Collating together all these storyboards and concept pieces for others to enjoy is truly an inspiration.
    Having recently worked with Tim Burton on Frankenweenie I especially enjoy seeing works from his previous movies and have recently caught his exhibition when it hit Paris in the spring.
    Fantastic artwork.
    Keep up the good work Maurice!

    Christian
    http://christiandevita.blogspot.com/

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    1. Maurice MitchellJune 23, 2012 at 8:49 PM

      Christian, thats so cool. I can't wait to great your experiences working with him. Thanks for stopping by.

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  4. SpacerGuyJune 18, 2012 at 6:46 PM

    Awesome storyboards Maurice. Burtons drawings are truly exceptional.

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    1. Maurice MitchellJune 23, 2012 at 8:51 PM

      Thanks Spacer guy. Its one of my favorite scenes from the movie.

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  5. OzmaproductionsJune 25, 2012 at 12:46 AM

     Hi Spacerguy---All the posted storyboards are my own,

    David Russell

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  6. Maurice MitchellJune 25, 2012 at 11:54 AM

     Thanks Christian. I hope that it helps current and future artists and entertains non-professional artists such as myself.  Thanks for visiting!

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  7. Maurice MitchellJune 25, 2012 at 11:55 AM

     Indeed David is correct. The storyboards are great, but definitely not mine.

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  8. Maurice MitchellJune 25, 2012 at 11:55 AM

     Liesel, I enjoy a great story myself. I love Burton's visuals though.

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  9. Maurice MitchellJune 25, 2012 at 11:56 AM

     Jeremy, what a great idea. I might skip Batman and Robin though. :P

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  10. lichtfusJune 28, 2012 at 11:35 AM

    I Will meet David for a master classe in belgium! Good blog and Wonderful works!

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