Odd Disney World: Mondo / Alamo Drafthouse Disney Posters

On the totem pole of things that are important to studios, movie poster art comes somewhere between the square footage of the fourth tier star's trailer and how many assistants the seventeenth producer is budgeted to have. I know that marketing departments work very hard to try to create posters that sell tickets. But that in and of itself is part of the problem. The best posters come from artists trying to capture the spirit of the film in one visual statement. I think that the art of the movie poster is being lost and it's very sad. Every once in a while we stumble across a striking poster (I am a fan of the poster for The Help over the summer and Disney gave us quite a doozy with the mostly wordless Winnie the Pooh and friends sailing on a sea of honey art), but by and large they feel assembled by committee, photoshopped within an inch of their lives and then plastered liberally in an desperate effort to prove that quantity will always trump quality. (Marketing exec: "Right? RIGHT?!?!") The approach to promotional art tends towards the very literal, the lazy under the guise of "artful vagueness", or bold fonts and big photos of the stars.

I read Entertainment Weekly's website daily. They do a great job of covering the big stuff, uncovering little niblets of random awesomeness, and using writers who feel like they have a personality instead of being journalistic info-bots regurgitating information that the sponsors paid to have fed to the public. On their page the other day was an article about the latest movie poster by a design house called Mondo. It was so visually striking that it actually made me want to see former Mousketeer Ryan Gosling's movie, Drive after months of not caring a lick. The write-up also mentioned that the company is an off-shoot of the Alamo Drafthouse cinema chain, which was elevated to hero status in my book for their strict no talking or texting during the movie policy. Check out this amazeballs commercial that they made. I still laugh every time I watch it. Bless them. (Warning: this video is not suitable for work or for little ears. Unless you work with tiny elves who swear like sailors. Then it's fine for both.)

The video went viral and, while there for a screening of their movie Young Adult, director Jason Reitman and actor Patton Oswalt, who was the voice of Ratatouille, made this companion piece. (Warning: still has wordy dirds.)

This all led me to go to the Mondo website and check out some of their other poster art. I promptly fell down a internet rabbit hole consisting of some of the most ingenious movie advertising artwork I had ever seen. Now, from what I can glean, these are not official movie posters, but rather artwork sanctioned by studios and used for runs at the Alamo Drafthouse and (rightly) sold to collectors as legitimate pieces of art. I was stunned. They are able to really get to the heartmeat of a movie in a very visceral way with just one single image. They make me want to go to movies I've never seen and make me look at ones that I have in a new light. Different artists are employed and they each bring their own unique talents to the projects. Stylistically they range from Art Deco and Nouveau to classic Hollywood to comic book to children's book illustrations, each using a specific style to highlight an aspect of the film being touted. Suffice it to say that it's very hard for me to pick a favorite. They are pretty much all impeccable.

Here is their take on some of the early animated classics. They are very youth-friendly without pandering to children with loud colors and/or insulting over-simplicity.

They've also taken a crack at some classic animated shorts. They all capture the time period of the twenties and thirties beautifully in their styling. They are playful, staying true to the Disney look while not being slavish to it.

Here is their only Pixar offering so far and it's for my personal favorite, Monsters Inc.! I love that there is a graphic simplicity that looks very modern but very classic at the same time, yet it is also packed with fantastic details, like the supporting characters on the bottom. (Tell me how long it took you to spot Randall. Wait, really? That's all? Well, now I feel dumb...) It also manages to perfectly capture the dynamic between worry-wart Mike, care-free Sully and astonished Boo in an instant.

Here we have Who Framed Roger Rabbit? It's amazing to me that they can give two films as different as this and Monster Inc. artwork that looks like it could be part of a related series while still retaining their own individuality. Great, great artistry on display here.

Here is their first and only (for now) Studio Ghibli poster for My Neighbor Totoro. I haven't seen this film yet, but I will say that this makes me eager to get around to it.

ABC commissioned a series of pieces for their storybook centered TV show Once Upon A Time (which Tom and I have become big fans of, by the by). Each one represents on of the tales that intertwine throughout the series. In a very classic, clean, inventive and hand-crafted way they invoke the stories of (in the order they are shown below) Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Rumpelstiltskin, Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. These look like they could be illustrative plates in a high-end edition of a book of fairy tales. I love them. Not to mention they pique my interest regarding characters that have yet to show up. Something to look forward to!

The first Disney film that they approached was Tron, which is fitting since most of their early offerings tends towards more science fiction movies and movies with cult followings, which are both groups Tron fits into comfortably. I love it. It evokes the original designs, adding a bit of a comic book sensibility and bursts of exciting color while depicting the thrill of the light cycle race scene.

When Tron: Legacy was released in theaters and both it and the original were released on Blu-ray, it gave Mondo an opportunity to revisit the films and it did so with two pairs of related posters. The first is a diptych, creating two halves of one whole and the second is strongly linked by it design and stylistic similarities. Both sets are rad.

Seeing this stuff makes me wonder why studios aren't lining up to get Mondo to do their actual poster art in droves. Disney itself is a bit hit-or-miss on the promotional artwork front, but is still more adventurous than many studios. Hopefully the fact that they have taken notice and given their blessing to Mondo bodes well for a bolder approach for them. My guess, though, is that it doesn't, unfortunately. We are just going to have to be satisfied for now that someone is lavishing this incredible artwork on the studio since they aren't doing it themselves. Can you imagine if they had let Mondo design their Diamond line covers? My heart would melt! I would even love to see what they would do with the less celebrated Disney titles and live action movies. I bet they would have a field day with back catalog films like Freaky Friday or Home on the Range and, if the studio widely used the art, it would show fans that the studio is investing in the aesthetic future of the company.

Do yourself a favor and take some time to explore their gallery of artwork. Their posters span blockbusters and indies, horror and family films, and they have almost certainly made one for a least a few of your favorites. The also have a store where you can purchase items such as prints and t-shirts for selected designs, including some with the Disney artwork. The prices are reasonable, especially for the limited edition prints that would look amazing framed. If you are looking to buy me a present, I am especially partial to "The Wise Little Hen" and "Steamboat Willie". Just putting that out there. Winky face. What are some of your faves? (Besides the Disney titles I love their posters for Trick'r'Treat and The Iron Giant among many, many others.) I'd love to hear what you think of their art and what you think about how Disney is currently doing with their own promotional art. Gimme a holler!

The Colors of Mary Blair at Disneyland- Part Three: Beyond "small world"

Just to catch y'all up, I took a pre-wedding trip to California in September to spend some time with my now-husband's friends and family in San Diego and to take a trip to Disneyland. We timed our excursion specifically so that we would be able to visit the amazing "Colors of Mary Blair" exhibit at the Disney Gallery, since we are both huge fans of her work. (Why is there no name for us Mary Blair fanatics yet? Blairvoyants? Blairmasters? Blairstylists? Hrm. I'll keep percolating and get back to you.) So far, I have shared photos of Mary's inspirational art for Disney films and for her masterpiece, "it's a small world". Now, I will share with you her work for other attractions and lands in the parks. Mary has quite a presence in Disneyland and Walt Disney World outside of "the happiest cruise that ever sailed".

These paintings were done for the never built "Western River Expedition", which is one of the saddest coulda-woulda-shouldas of all the abandoned Disney park attractions. Originally there was no plan to bring "Pirates of the Caribbean" to WDW. At the time, there was still the residual aspiration towards something new and better left over from Walt, rather than constant rehashing of what was already popular. In lieu of that ride, there was to be a boat ride through scenes of America's expansion West, designed by the amazing Marc Davis. The area was also to have a runaway mine train coaster, which eventually was built as "Big Thunder Mountain Railroad". It was to be the most expensive attraction area ever up to that point. When the park opened and there were no pirates stem to stern, people got miffed and complained. In yet another case of giving the people what they think they want rather than what they don't yet know that they want, the executives caved, hastily adding the pirate attraction and shelving the "Western River Expedition". I still bemoan the decision to this day. The Mary Blair paintings are gorgeous, suggesting a more playful, less literal use of colors in the scenes. In the end, they were quite influential on the look of a future Disney project, the vastly underrated film Home on the Range.

The following is Mary's concept work for Tomorrowland. There were big plans for a "new" Tomorrowland to open in 1967 and Walt wanted Mary, who had done so beautifully with "it's a small world" just a few years before, to create murals to adorn it. She obliged, creating some beautiful pieces that were executed in tile (the ones in a similar vein to "small world" which incorporate the children, collectively titled "The Spirit of Creative Energies Among Children") and some that never were (the more abstract ones). The tile murals stayed up until they were covered up in the late 80's and late 90's. There is some controversy surrounding whether the murals were destroyed or merely covered up. I hope that those in charge had the good sense not to destroy her gorgeous artwork to slap on a generic "Star Tours" fast-moving ride vehicle picture, and that the works are still there, waiting to be rediscovered.

You all know that I have a bit of a past with the murals at the Contemporary Hotel in WDW. They are absolutely stunning. Until you get off of the Monorail and stand at the bottom, though, you have scant concept of the true size and scale of these massive and beautiful pieces of art. They also include one of my favorite Disney icons- the five-legged goat. I have sort of adopted the little dude as a personal guiding symbol for the acceptance of variance and imperfection in life and art because that is what makes and keeps it interesting. Not only should imperfection be embraced, but sometimes it can be by design. (Future tattoo? Most likely.) Here is some of her fantastic concept art for the murals, known as "The Grand Canyon Concourse".

And that brings us to the end of the exhibit proper, but while we are at it, I thought I'd share a few pics from elsewhere in the park. Just for kicks. Y'all with me? Awesome! First, here are the standard shots of the sign, the incredible facade, and the clock from "it's a small world". I will never not get a little misty-eyed walking towards it. There is magic in that facade, let me tell you.

I wanted to include some pictures of the rest of the area of Fantasyland that surrounds "it's a small world" because before I went to Disneyland for the first time almost a year ago I had absolutely no idea that there was a mini Mary Blair land in that corner of the park. People (understandably) focus so much on showing the facade of the ride itself that they forget to share that almost every inch is Mary Blair themed, from the gift shops,

to the trash cans,

to the speakers and lighting fixtures for the parades,

to the gate that the parade emerges from behind,

to even the churro and pretzel stands!

Inside the Toy Shop they have a framed classic poster attraction. And I want it. Sigh.

And of course, even the cast members get in on the action with their costumes. Carolyn was kind enough to let me distract her from her boat supervision duties long enough to snap a shot. I wanted to really feature the embroidered "small world" boat on the pocket, but I didn't want her to feel like I was some masher trying to snap a pic of her cleavage. In the end, I'm glad I got a shot of her lovely smile. And that fabulous hat.

Every time I go towards that section of the park, I get all giddy. The colors and the geometric shapes, the 60's-liciousness of the whole affair, the joy of it all. It is quite possibly one of my favorite places on this Earth. Now those of you Mary Blair fans that have not yet visit Disneyland have been fairly warned. You may want to carry a box of tissues when you approach the attraction. It's a bit overwhelming in the best possible way. Gird your loins, kiddos.

I also have mentioned that there is a tribute to Mary Blair within the ride itself. One of the doll figures is actually modeled to look like Mary. I try every time to get a good shot of her, but because there is no light shining on her and she is behind the boat as you move through, it's always a challenge. This is the best shot I could get of her from the last trip. She's standing on the back side of the Eiffel Tower in the France section of the ride, wearing yellow and green and holding on to a red balloon.

Even outside the area of Fantasyland that houses "it's a small world" Mary's influence can be felt. This singing flower is in the queue for the Alice in Wonderland dark ride. It's not surprising that you would find a touch of the Blair all over this ride, since it is the film that hews closest to her style onscreen.

Even across the way in Disney's California Adventure you see how influential Mary's aesthetic still is on Imagineers. This is from the facade for the (fully awesome) "Monsters Inc.- Mike and Sulley to the Rescue!" dark ride. The fantastic use of color, the simple shapes, and the joyful exuberance are all a tip of the hat to Mary's work.

In the Art of Animation building, Mary's artwork for Alice in Wonderland is featured prominently during that films onscreen representation. By the way, if you've never been inside this building figuring that it's not worth your time because of a lack of shiny things that move fast, get your keister in there ASAP. I stood in this room, which surrounds you with sounds, art and stills from Disney and Pixar animated movies, as it cycled from one film to the next until I had seen all of them. It was one of my favorite experiences in the park.

Even beyond the berm, Mary Blair is there! This last shot was taken of a window display in the amazing and humongous to the point of overwhelming Amoeba Music in L.A. Tom and I caught up with one of my best friends from college and stopped here on the way back. I don't know if this is a permanent display or I was just at the right place at the right time, but I think it illustrates just how far Mary's cultural reach extends. I love this window. It's just a great big, bright, non-ironic splash of joy on the side of a hipster-ish music store (remember those, kids?) in a cooler-than-thou city. It makes my heart sing.

Well folks, that brings us to the end of our journey through the Wonderful World of my favorite Disney artist, Mary Blair. Thank you all for indulging me and I hope that these entries have brought a fraction of the pure happiness to you that revisiting all of these memories has brought to me! Do me a favor, will ya? Next time you are floating through "it's a small world" and you come upon the Eiffel Tower, take a second to spot Mary and give a quick thanks to the immensely talented lady whose singular artistic vision inspired it all. I always do.