His Shapes in Motion

For years, I have been intrigued by the work of Saul Bass and his title sequences for the movies. Having always been a fan of his images for Vertigo and Anatomy of a Murder, it was fascinating to explore his other title sequences, poster images, and designs for record albums.

The website, notcoming.com, has an incredible page of accumulated Saul Bass title sequences that you can view frame by frame. You can see his genius over the years and through the decades, from 1954′s Carmen Jones to 1995′s Casino. Some of his most well known ones like Bonjour Tristesse or Exodus can also be seen on YouTube.

In addition, if you feel enamored of the hand-written type used in many of Bass works, you can download a close approximate; Hitchcock by Matt Terich, through Typographica. On that page you will find other links to similar fonts, like my favorite at the moment, Vertigo, from Fontoville.

If you think the art of Saul Bass looks similar to something you have seen somewhere recently, I would not be surprised if that piece was probably influenced by his work. His use of bold graphic shapes and strong primary colors, sometimes combined with smooth, circular, or even jerking movements worked wonderfully to catch and engage the eye.