Saul Bass: The Man who Changed Film and Design Forever

Introduction

• Saul Bass was a pivotal figure in graphic design and advertising.
• Known for changing the golden rules of design with simple, yet innovative thinking.
• Worked on thousands of ad campaigns from the 1950s onwards.
• Collaborated with renowned filmmakers like Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Otto Preminger, Billy Wilder, and Martin Scorsese.

Early Life and Education

• Born in 1920 in New York.
• Showed early interest in art through sketching and drawing.
• Studied under Gyrgy Kepes, a master of Bauhaus art style.

Career in Design

• Moved to California in the 1940s, worked in advertising and graphic design.
• Designed iconic corporate logos for North American companies.
• Founded Saul Bass & Associates in 1952.
• Bass's corporate logos have a substantial longevity, averaging over 34 years.

Notable Corporate Logos

• Warner Communications (1972)
• United Way (1972)
• Girl Scouts (1978)
• AT&T Bell System (1983)
• Kleenex (1980)
• Quaker (1971)
• Minolta (1978)

Film Title Sequences and Posters

• In 1954, designed the title sequence for Otto Preminger's "Carmen Jones".
• Gained fame from designing "The Man with the Golden Arm" sequence.
• Became a leading title and poster designer in Hollywood.

Famous Poster Designs

• The Man With The Golden Arm (1955)
• Saint Joan (1957)
• Vertigo (1958)
• The Shining (1980)

Innovations in Film

• Transformed movie posters with a minimalistic approach.
• Changed film title credits from static to dynamic, with kinetic type.
• Made title credits a spectacle, encouraging projectionists to show them with the curtain open.

Notable Title Sequences

• North by Northwest (1959)

Legacy

• Saul Bass’s work continues to inspire creatives in design and film.
• Known for leveraging simplicity, color, basic shapes, and playful animations.
• Encouraged a new perspective in approaching film and design.