Director Boris Vesselinov asked me to design the poster for his short film Sunless, as it was gearing for its run on the festival circuit. We had worked together previously on his film Zero, a poster which emphasized the negative space above the characters in a moment of conflict.

For Sunless — it which two brothers become stranded in their submarine at the bottom of the sea — I felt an inversion of the Zero poster might be suitable. The film emphasizes the character’s claustrophobia and isolation, with a ticking clock as water fills their cabin. So I felt it’d be fitting to have most of the poster be water, with the character’s embracing as they prepare for their death. I leaned into DP Tom Bolles’s green color palette for the film, the sickly hues adding to the audience’s unease.

I like for my posters to tell the story of the film rather than simply be character showcases. I incorporated the submarine at the bottom of the poster as its exploring the depths of the sea, and used the title design to lead the viewer’s eye to it. The title was the single most challenging part of the poster; Boris wanted to evoke old nixie tube clocks, so I tirelessly experimented with adjustment layers and glow effects to imitate one. I also spent many hours working to sell the water effects with lighting / color adjustments.