Pulp Fiction poster design process

  1. This August Whirlow Hall Farm in Partnership with Henry Boot are bringing Hollywood to Sheffield and inviting audiences to dive with us head first into one of the coolest films in cinema history. on August 10th they will be showing a summertime screening of the Quentin Tarantino cult classic ‘Pulp fiction’. They’ll have their largest screen yet at their pop up cinema event on a real working farm.

Slick, Sleek and effortlessly cool this film favourite will be accompanied by shakes, burgers, bar and jiving as a live rock n roll band aim to get the audience of movers and shakers in the mood before the film begins.

I first created film posters for the Farm for the Halloween Witches in the Woods showings in 2018. I was really pleased with the bold designs I created and the impactful marketing campaign they produced. When undertaking the design of the Pulp Fiction poster I wanted something equally impactful but reflecting of this cult classic film.

I wanted to create something eye catching, bold about more than just the film but capturing it straight away. I wanted it to be simple, stylish and bold. The first thing a Tarantino is though is cool, so cool the poster just had to be.

I toned down my chaotic colouring for abold but limited palate. The bright colours make the poster impactful and arty but the use of simple characters, black and whites and bold design make it classical cool. The patterns Nd colours are designed to invoke that retro Tarantino feel. The atomic Sputnik patterns invoke the 50s diner theme of the event taken for, the movie. The ‘Pulp Fiction’ title font references the original poster which in turn pays homage to vintage thriller fiction. Hence the film title.

The copy is short and snappy and the design translates well into half page formats for versatility in print distribution.

Find out more about the event and how to book tickets

at www.whirlowhallfarm.org/events/Pulp-Fiction

Witches in the Woods: Film Poster Designs for Whirlow Hall Farm Trust

I absolutely adore designing film and event posters. I’d say it is one of my top things as an illustrator I love to do. Ask me to provide an illustration for a horror film event and you may even hear me attempt to suppress a squeal of joy.  So it was pretty awesome when I got the opportunity to design two posters for some Halloween film screenings at Whirlow Hall Farm in Sheffield.

Now, I am not talking about enjoying designing a poster that is scary. Just a poster for a genre that features all the things I love to draw. Dark woods, nefarious characters, spirits, ghosts, monsters, ghouls and goblins, yetis, vampires…. I’m guessing you’ve got the point.

But why not scary?

It’s a deliberate choice not to draw them scary, even for adults only events. Firstly, a practical one. Is it ever really a good idea to draw a poster that is genuinely scary? Think about who will see it and where it goes. If you know it’s going to be printed onto a flyer that could potentially end up in cafes, shops and libraries then I’d say absolutely not. Yes we are in the business of representing something through our art, but would any of us feel very good about spooking out some poor kiddywinks who stumble up on our designs and nightmares ensue? It’s not just kids either. It runs the risk of putting people off your event and just a few comments to the event organiser from people who really don’t like being freaked out and there’s a good chance they won’t ask for your help again.

The main reason though is that it just isn’t me. I love the supernatural, dark and creepy but everything I do has a bright and playful happy edge to it too. It might sound contradictory but I’d like to think that those who look at my designs, and particular the posters I have done here for Whirlow Hall Farm’s upcoming immersive woodland cinema events, will agree that my work exhibits both of these things. I think it just goes to show that having your event scare people’s socks off is enough in itself without your marketing trying to do the same too.

Whirlow Hall Farm Halloween Cinema Event Film Poster Illustration Commission for “The Blair Witch Project” and “The Witch”
Whirlow Hall Farm Halloween Cinema Event Film Poster Illustration Commission for “Mary and the WItch’s Flower” childrens film screening