Book Review – The Art of The Creator: Designs of Futures Past

If you ever wanted to do a deep dive into what it takes to formulate a script, develop a design language, scout locations, and shoot during a pandemic, then James Mottram has authored a worthy addition to your bookshelf.  The Art of The Creator: Designs of Futures Past published by Insight Editions and Regency is exquisitely laid out and has no shortage of concept art and behind-the-scenes imagery.  All the key players are interviewed beginning with a foreword written by filmmaker Gareth Edwards that sets the tone for what follows; the reader comes to understand his mindset which is to break from conventional thinking to create a methodology that is more freeform, economically efficient, and avoids dramatic creative and technical shifts in postproduction.   Basically, the approach is to shoot first and design later which is enabled by Edwards being his own camera operator, meaning that he can capture exactly the desired framing and composition without worrying about it getting lost in translation.

The narrative moves as quickly as the production crew had to be when doing the setups for 80 different locations in Thailand, Japan and Nepal.  It is fascinating to learn about how the locations dictated the visual language which in turn was influenced by the product design of the 1980s when the blocky and button operated Sony Walkman reigned supreme not the sleek digitally centric iPhone.  The analogue stylistic choices bring something familiar and grounded to the imagery, thereby being the inspiration for the subtitle Designs of Futures Past.   he material is divided into seven chapters that follow a chronological timeline that starts with concept and concludes with theatrical release.  The one criticism is after the extensive examination of preproduction and production, postproduction does not get the same treatment which is a shame as the movie is the frontrunner to win the Oscar for Best Visual Effects at the 96th Academy Awards. Also, there is a lot to be said for the contributions of editorial, sound, colour grading, and music in crafting the world envisioned by Edwards into its fullest form.

The Art of The Creator: Designs of Futures Past is an appropriate testament to an individual with the wherewithal to follow his convictions and produce something that is far removed from the cookie cutter franchise mentality of Hollywood and in the process establish a viable template for future filmmakers to adopt.

Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer who currently resides in Canada; he can be found at LinkedIn.