Collateral follows a cab driver, Max, taking a fare from a passenger who offers him hundreds of dollars to drive him around Los Angeles over the course of a single night. He realizes too late that the passenger is a paid hitman, coercing him to drive him from hit to hit.
My initial approach to ideating thumbnails for this poster were to emphasize the core genre elements of the film; SPEED and DANGER. I looked at references that ranged from 80's slashers (Jason Takes Manhattan) to various 90's action-thrillers that evoke the same tone.
I felt that the tone of the thumbnails felt a little too loud, considering the mood of Michael Mann's thriller neo-noir was more meditative and sometimes even quieter. I took a break from the project for a couple months.
Feeling like I just needed to get my idea out, I eventually settled on a quick sketch that still had the same pulpy, kitschy tone I was going for previously. However, I thought that my new angle would draw from influences of 60's typography and poster design, while keeping alive the moody LA nightlife atmosphere of the movie.
The final product is a combination of the cheesier elements of mid-century poster illustration and the feel of the 2000's movie.
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