To mark the 50th anniversary of Francis Ford Coppola’s (The Godfather, One From the Heart) seminal neo-noir thriller, THE CONVERSATION, STUDIOCANAL is releasing a brand-new 4K restoration of the Palme D’or winner and will return to UK cinemas on July 5, 2024.
Pre-order the special 2-disc 4K UHD Collector’s edition now from ZAVVI.
The artwork for the collector’s edition is absolutely beautiful and was created by illustrator Laurent Durieux, whose work many of you may already be familiar with. We had a chance to chat with Laurent about his contribution to the release.
Can you tell us how this commission came to be?
I was contacted by StudioCanal. They knew I had made several artworks/posters for Francis’s classic movies including a first version of The Conversation designed in collaboration with belgian comic artist François Schuiten in 2018.This time they wanted me to do this for the 50th anniversary of the release of the movie.
How much direction and input did STUDIOCANAL provide for the project?
They wanted the vibe of the 70’s the be present in the poster. And so that’s what I did, I think.
You had previously created an alt poster for The Conversation for Nautilus Art Prints. Is it safe to assume that you are a fan of the film?
Yes, it is. As I am of it’s director.
Did you spend a lot of time with the movie prior to getting down to work?
Not really. I rewatched the movie once to remind me of the details I may have missed in 2018.
How much planning and sketching went into the artwork?
I just submitted one sketch to Francis first and then to StudioCanal. It went smoothly. Not too much planning before cracking on with it.
Anyone familiar with the movie will recognize the scene depicted on the cover. Why did you choose it? Did you settle on it from the get-go or were you looking at other options?
I chose that scene as it allowed me to show Harry Caul’s personality and psychology. It was immediate for me in terms of direction, I didn’t really explore any other options or ideas (other than the one I had already explored in 2018).
Normally, your art is characterized by a heavy focus on the architecture and vastness of cityscapes. Yet the cover for The Conversation centers on an indoor space. Is there a symbolism behind that?
Yes, it symbolises Harry’s troubled and paranoid condition. I wanted it to be oppressive and closed up.
I’ve seen at least one color variant of the cover. How much did you experiment with the palette?
I experimented with the palette until I was satisfied enough with it. It came pretty quickly as I remember it. Sometimes it takes a bit longer though…
Finally, what was the best part about working on this project for you?
The best part for me for any of the posters I do is finding the concept, the overall composition, drawing the concept sketch is something I really enjoy as everything is on there before I have to spend weeks making it look like it does once finished.
Pre-order the special 2-disc 4K UHD Collector’s edition now from ZAVVI.
