Thai artist who designed ‘Joker,’ ‘Harry Potter,’ ‘Blade Runner’ posters on making it in Hollywood

Whether you love the film or agreed with reviews calling it the most disappointing film of 2019, few movies have been discussed and dissected – and watched – this year as Joker

Though the film has been out in Thai theaters over a month now, it’s provocative power has been felt outside Hollywood — becoming a political symbol adopted by protestors  against their governments. Last week for Halloween, the clown character was one of the hottest costumes.

We saw the film (and praised Joaquin Phoenix’s performance) and were excited to find out the man behind its chilling poster is Thai national Mark Savetsila.

The senior art director at Works Advertising in Los Angeles, 35-year-old Mark talked to Coconuts Bangkok about designing film posters for Joker and other well-known films such as neo-noir, sci-fi sequel Blade Runner 2049, Christopher Nolan’s World War II thriller Dunkirk and even the recent Brad Pitt-turned-space monkey Ad Astra.

His lightly-edited responses follow.

How did the Joker poster come to be?

My method of making a movie poster is how to distill a movie down to its core essence to represent it in one key art image. 

For Joker, I was inspired by a camera test of Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker, teased by the Director Todd Phillips with full-on makeup and set to the song Laughing from The Guess Who. From the expression of the character to creative editing techniques, I conveyed the ideal message by showing Joker, who eyes still express Arthur Fleck – the man who’s trapped between the lack of emotion and the brutality of his smile at the same time. The simple powerful impact image emphasized expression over advertising.


Tell us about other posters you’ve been particularly proud of and why?

Well, I love all of the posters I have designed, but one that stood out the most is Harry Potter, because it had been listed as one of the most successful cinematic franchises of all time, and I’m very proud that my posters had been chosen every year since I started working on these films, from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010) and the final Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011). 

Also a few other films that I’m honored to innovate and incorporate the design accordingly with marketing strategy include Ad Astra, Ocean’s 8, Blade Runner 2049, Justice League, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and Jupiter Ascending.

I believe that great design goes beyond the aesthetic, design has the ability to not only evoke short term interest, it has the power to build brands for the long-term, brands that build emotional connections for their audiences.


What was the concept for
Blade Runner 2049? What were you given to work with to complete the movie poster?

When I was first assigned to work on Blade Runner 2049, I think it’s a deep, rich, smart film full of great sci-fi concepts – every image is driven with color, life and feel.

My take on that was how to liberate a film’s distinctive visual style into a poster, so I came up with these bold and highly saturated color schemes and by using vibrating color combinations, gave the illusion of motion on print, which had been used throughout the campaign.


How did you become a part of Works Advertising company? 

After graduating from Silpakorn University in 2006, I moved to Los Angeles with a goal of pursuing my true passion for art and design … so I submitted my portfolio to various companies in the design field. One of the very first company who responded is Crew Creative, an award winning entertainment advertising agency specializing in print. 

I remember the day I went for the interview. I looked around and saw many movie posters hanging on the wall, reminiscent of my childhood, when I used to collect movie handbills. I thought to myself, it would be great if I could design a movie poster. That’s the beginning of my career, I started as a junior art director working directly with my creative director who later on started a new company: Works Advertising. 

It has been 13 years now in this industry, and I’m still learning every day from creative ideation through adaptive execution, to strategy and brand aesthetics.


Designing movie posters, do you have to be a cinephile yourself? Which are your favorites?

To me, I’m not a cinephile but I do love the arts in all forms. Films are included unquestioningly, but it’s embracing disciplines such as fine arts, fashion and literature. Good films also inspire my creativity.

Which are my favorites? I’ve never had a favorite one because it’s been changing with the times, but one film I could think of recently and so grateful to design a poster for is Dunkirk. In my opinion, if this film is a painting, it could be compared to a famous painting Impression, Sunrise by Monet. Great cinematography and Hans Zimmer’s score are just brilliant. Good process of deliberately arranging elements is a good art.


Have you heard of
Repostered and the alt-poster movement? Do you think Hollywood movie posters have lost their creativity?

Yes, I have heard of them. I truly respect and admire many talented designers, in fact I had been purchasing some of their posters as well.

I don’t think Hollywood movie posters have lost their creativity yet, but we must understand the marketing perspective to conceptualizing the notion of business,

at the end of the day it’s a big stake in this industry, and the studio has a responsibility to gain advantage from their properties. There’s a lot of factors and limitations before the final approval for each official poster.

My role as a designer, I do my best to balance between the pleasure and the value of works of art and advertising.


Some young Thais and art students now look up to you as a success story for being able to work abroad and produce high-profile works. What would you tell them?

Discover the true role of design in your everyday life. I have been fortunate to be in the right place at the right time, but it was the effort, passion and perseverance that gave me the ability to recognize opportunities when they arose. Nevertheless I maintain an insatiable curiosity and empathy.

Related:

Trailblazing Thai animator who worked on ‘Avengers’ and ‘Star Wars’ on living the Hollywood dream 

From Chonburi to the red carpet, Academy Award winner chased her dream

Thai Disney Story Artist with Oscar in her hand shared all over the web



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