A Tribute to Great Filmmakers
FROM SCREEN TO CANVAS
My passion for drawing and painting began in childhood and continued through my teenage years with graffiti. During and after my communication design studies, I increasingly focused on depicting people and their lives. At the same time, watching films and series has always been a great interest. The idea of combining both passions eventually led to the "Movie Director Portrait" series.
The inspiration came from the idea of giving directors a face and honouring their work in a special visual way – by combining the director's portrait with scenes from their iconic films. While we usually know the main actors, the creative minds behind the masterpieces almost always remain in the background for the audience. I wanted to close this gap with the series.
THE CREATIVE PROCESS
FROM RESEARCH TO COMPOSITION
The style of the series is inspired by classic film posters – clear, informative, yet with sufficient negative space to avoid appearing overloaded. Each new portrait begins with thorough research. I find out which films are most significant for the respective director and select iconic scenes that harmoniously fit into the overall composition. Then I create an initial layout.
CRAFTSMANSHIP MEETS DIGITAL
I begin with a pencil sketch to establish the proportions. For this, I use photos and film stills as reference. I paint the director's portrait in watercolour on paper, and also illustrate the scenes by hand. Finally, I combine everything digitally to create a cohesive overall composition.
The selection of scenes is based not only on the significance of the films, but also on my personal taste. It's fundamentally about capturing the essence of the works while creating an aesthetic balance. Unfortunately, I don't always have time to watch all the films intensively. Some I already know very well through my personal interest, while others I discover through trailers, excerpts, or reviews. Sometimes it's difficult to select the most important films of the respective director without being too influenced by my own taste.
ATMOSPHERE AND INSPIRATION
THE SOUNDTRACK AS COMPANION
On the days when I work on the director portraits, I fully immerse myself in the subject. While I draw or paint at my desk and work out the details, I often listen to music – and when working on the "Movie Directors Portraits", preferably the soundtrack of the respective films. This creates a special atmosphere and influences my creative process.
SHAPED BY FILM HISTORY
I grew up with the mafia genre of the 90s (Goodfellas, A Bronx Tale, The Godfather) and with Tarantino films (Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Reservoir Dogs), and I think these films have influenced the directors' style and my understanding of visual representation and composition.
FILM AND ART IN DIALOGUE
I see many parallels between film direction and visual art. A director decides with every shot how something is presented, similar to how a visual artist must determine the visual guidance and style of their work. The challenge for me is to make a statement with a single image, while film can tell an entire story through a sequence of scenes. That's where both disciplines differ and have their own challenges.
I've drawn inspiration from various artists and styles for the series. Many directors have also specifically drawn on parts of film history and created something new and entirely individual from it.
SPECIAL HIGHLIGHTS AND FUTURE PLANS
THE FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA COLLABORATION
The Francis Ford Coppola print is particularly special to me in the series – in 2022 I worked together with his studio and illustrated a custom-designed "Movie Director Portrait" of him, which is now also available here as a print.
WHAT'S COMING NEXT?
I have a number of directors I would still like to portray – we'll be publishing Steve McQueen soon. But also Spike Lee, Orson Welles, James Cameron and many others should not be missing from the series in my opinion.
You can find all his works on Julian Rentzsch's website.
I have also begun the next series, which shows famous actors in their different roles. Additionally, I'm planning to create other iconic film and series motifs as posters.
YOU DECIDE!
In true THE ONES WE LOVE fashion, you can also help determine which director will be realised next in the Movie Director Portrait Series. Here you can find the voting