Once – Custom DVD cover.
© Fox. Still photography by David Cleary.

Buy the film at Amazon.com! Once

From the vault –
From Why So Serious? to not-so-serious, this week’s feature is a nice little movie with a great soundtrack, Once. The lead pair’s later CD Strict Joy as “The Swell Season” is similarly worth recommending.

This custom cover, from a period when every cover I designed seemed to employ the “blur lights” effect, makes use of the cool colors and lovely scenery of the film with little additional trickery needed on my part. Simple and sweet, just like the movie. I hope you’ll enjoy it on this swell Cover Saturday.

The Dark Knight – Custom Blu-ray cover.
© Warner. Still photography by Stephen Vaughan.

Buy the film at Amazon.com! The Dark Knight (+ BD Live) [Blu-ray]

That Christopher Nolan fellow sure gets a lot of play here…

The Dark Knight didn’t thrill me as much as expected, with more emphasis on action and less on character development than I would have hoped, especially given the film’s length. Nonetheless, I can easily understand the appeal and was happy to try my hand at a design.

Aiming to create something a little different from the many fantastic artworks for this film, and looking to use Batman on the front, here is a custom cover matching last week’s design for Batman Begins. I hope you’ll enjoy it on this so serious Cover Saturday.

Batman Begins – Custom Blu-ray cover.
© Warner. Still photography by David James.

Buy the film at Amazon.com! Batman Begins [Blu-ray]

Do you remember that day in 2005 when you walked out of the theater so pleasantly surprised by just how great Batman Begins actually turned out?

Looking back on 2010, the list of custom covers of which I’m most proud would undoubtedly feature Christopher Nolan’s Inception and Memento. It’s no surprise, then, that I’m riding the Nolan train into 2011 with this simple custom for Batman Begins, a revitalization of my past HD DVD design. I hope you’ll enjoy it on this resolute Cover Saturday.

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre – Custom Blu-ray cover, Blue Skies Variant.

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre – Custom Blu-ray cover, Gold Rush Variant.

© Warner. Still photography by Mac Julian.

Buy the film at Amazon.com! The Treasure of the Sierra Madre [Blu-ray]

It’s the final Cover Saturday of the year and Santa Claus is comin’ to town, so let’s end big with my most work-intensive design yet, done in two variants, and posted a day early!

For me, a design like this is what custom covers are all about. Free of art directors and deadlines, this cover is fueled by pure love of film and design, allowing me to pour as much work as possible into something like colorizing black and white images. I hope you’ll enjoy it and have a wonderful holiday on this Kringle-approved Cover Saturday eve.

To see Before and After colorization comparisons, a retail versus custom face off, and previews of the full designs before you decide your download…
 
Please Continue Reading…

The Maltese Falcon – Custom Blu-ray cover.
© Warner. Still photography by Mack Elliott.

Buy the film at Amazon.com! The Maltese Falcon [Blu-ray]

In 1942, the Academy Award for Best Picture went to How Green Was My Valley. Also nominated were Gary Cooper starrer Sergeant York, frequently remade Here Comes Mr. Jordan, Hitchcock’s intense Suspicion, the game- changing Citizen Kane, and John Huston and Humphrey Bogart’s first of several masterpieces together, The Maltese Falcon. AFI would add Sullivan’s Travels to that list of nominations, and there would still be another dozen gems stuck below the fold. 1941 was a good year for movies.

Maybe that list is what keeps The Maltese Falcon from standing out in film history as prominently as it should. But, between the visual compositions and the acting on display, it’s easy to see why more than a couple of people made or revived their careers with this film.

What more needs to be said? It’s great. The Blu-ray release’s price finally lowered, and what better way to celebrate than with a custom cover? I hope you’ll enjoy it on this Cover Saturday filled with stuff that dreams are made of.