Last year I did two promotional posters for a project based in Dubai, for a buddy of mine named Ashraf Ghori. Ashraf is an innovator, the founder of the company Xpanse CGI, having an international client base achieved by supplying diverse media-based services including exceptional websites, concept designs, TV commercials, incisive product branding and CG animation. He has produced the first sci fi CGI movie in Dubai, and his superhero character is a sentient cyborg named Xero [XE7], who rises up as a national force for justice.
When I talked to him about the sort of promotional posters needed, he informed me about the origins and abilities of his futuristic character, showing me reference images as well. I soon realized that beyond producing excellent work, it would be best to make a strong commercial statement with the art, utilizing it as an opportunity to showcase the national origin of the work.
A while back I did an article on Tom Cruise and Mission Impossible 4, which was being filmed partly in Dubai UAE last year: http://dsngsfm.blogspot.com/2010/11/is-this-mission-possible.html
A segment of that forthcoming action-packed movie showcased the world's tallest building. And after thinking about it, I figured that landmarks would be best as background elements for the posters.
Here are a series of pics showing the coloring sequences that I did via Photoshop CS3, for one of the posters [it took about 2 days to complete]. When you zoom in, you can see the micro details that were added in order to enhance the visual reality of the image:
You can learn more about Ashraf Ghori's Cool XE7 project and his character via this link: http://www.facebook.com/XESeven. And the second exclusive promo poster I did for the Xero Error project can be found here: http://www.xero-error.com/xblog/
The building in the background within the poster above is the Burj Al Arab, the World's only 7-star hotel. Those patrons that venture into this luxurious facility are treated like Arabian kings throughout their stay. I had to use references for drawing/coloring it, in order to ensure I got the structural frame and night-time lighting right.
This building is magnificent. It's just one of those iconic structure's that stands out, contrived as an ascending spire and a ship's mast that actually has a disc-shaped tennis court near its crest. Creating something that was both unique and ultra-modern was definitely part of the architectural design theme. And the fact that this 1,053-foot tall hotel is created upon an artificial island in a warm climatic region means that it automatically yields an extremely relaxing vibe to its guests.
In the last image above, what you see at the crest of the pic is a reflection on the roof in the dining area. One of the restaurants in the Burj Al Arab is called the Al Muntaha [which translates in Arabic as "The Ultimate"] and it rises over 600 feet above the landmass of the Persian gulf, offering a fantastic panoramic view of the flanking area.
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