The Hidden Design Language of Movies: Let’s Talk About Project Hail Mary

But first, an admission: I almost didn’t see Project Hail Mary, simply because I hated the movie poster.

Yup, that’s how petty I am. But boy, am I glad I went anyway…

So first, I’ll explain my complaint. Then, we shall rave. Shall we begin?

So—What’s Up with This Poster?

For weeks, this poster was grinning at me with its wide-toothed typography from bus stops all over LA. As much as I think Ryan Gosling is an amazing actor, the wide kerning of the needless movie slogan filled me with trepidation.

The part that offends me, which I hope you picked up on too, is the completely unnecessary “BELIEVE IN THE HAIL MARY.” It creates clutter and is confusing to the eyes; in its absence, Ryan Gosling would’ve stood out prominently all by his lonesome, which additionally hints at a big plot point of the movie—his isolation.

You already have “Hail Mary” on there at the bottom, featured prominently in the same font, only thicker and with some glass texture. My eyes locked onto the double Hail Mary, so the tagline is a complete waste of space.

But look, I got over it, and all is right in the world.

Speaking of Space, Let’s Talk RATIOS

In this interview with directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (the duo behind the awarding-winning Into the Spiderverse movie), they explain their use of aspect ratio in the film.

All scenes filmed on earth are flashbacks and 2.39.1 ratio (in normal-people speak, that means you’ll see black bars above the frame on your TV), while space scenes are in the present and shown with a tall ratio (filling the whole screen).

“The idea is that space is expansive, and we’re living in the present,” Chris Miller explains. “It’s all around you.”

Phil Lord jumps in to explain the added film grain in space scenes, contrasting it with the earth scenes which, as they’re set in the past, are softer since we often idealize memories.

How to Apply

• When designing, know your context. I’ll be the first to admit, my style is often too avante-garde and punk rock for my nonprofit day job. And that’s okay! I leave my flair for after-hours.
• Ask yourself: What does your copy need? What does your audience need? Would your copy be more powerful in a horizontal or a vertical stack? Does your audience compare more to noise and grain, or smooth gradients and gaussian blurs?
• For imagery choice in editorial design, we must keep in mind the size stipulations. I recently worked on a project where I had to shuffle images and copy around, simply because I had to include a very vertical statue that could not be cropped in any other way. What a puzzle!

Fast Isn’t Always Good—It Just Takes Away the Fun

One of the most refreshing aspects of this movie was the return to practical effects. For instance, this insanely gorgeous pink bokeh scene could’ve been some dopey CGI like the slop prowling in your stock account. But no.

Watch this video for the full explanation of how they achieved this effect (it involves removing the infrared filter from the camera and hanging lights on chicken wire…movie magic!).

Next up is the fact that they actually built Rocky as a puppet! Lord and Miller knew that the heart of the movie was the believable relationship between Grace and this alien, and this was something they felt could best be achieved if the actor was interacting with something actually there.

Finally, the film touch. I hate the modern-day blown-out hospital-esque coloring we’re getting. What happened to the warm highlights and hints of cyan? Although they did shoot this movie digitally, they printed the movie onto film after they’d gone through regular digital post-processing to get the irregularities and expressiveness. I thought I saw some film magic!

How To Apply

• Remember that design is your craft. Just like writers, just like filmmakers, just like blacksmiths (do people still do that?)—you must cultivate your skills. You’re not a machine, you’re not an automaton, you’re not AI. When you watch interviews with these directors, you see how much they enjoy the creative process, thinking outside the box, and getting geeky about their interests.

And Finally—Finding Inspiration in the Oddest of Places

Live life voraciously.

What does that look like? Geeking out about this “silly” space movie. I was yapping at work today about centripetal force, the element xenon, and other science-y things featured in Project Hail Mary. Because inspiration comes from everywhere.

Getting excited about life yields better creative results.

I was inspired by the golden crystally structure of Rocky’s ship; by the triangular shapes that made up the “hamster wheel” he rolls around in; by the beautiful containers his gifts came in. These visuals are all fodder for the imagination.

Above all, art reminds you what it is to be alive. Call it cheesy, I don’t care—there’s nothing like crying in a movie theater about two fictional characters. There’s nothing like leaving, your head filled with starry skies and swimming pink space scenes.

And there’s nothing like a piece of art inspiring you to dig deep inside you, and be brave.

Because who knows?

You might just save the world.