Ask many a designer or illustrator to list their major creative influences and there is little doubt that the name Saul Bass will crop up on more than one occasion.

Considered to be one of the great graphic designers, Saul Bass was the creator of some of the most iconic and memorable company logos (Quaker, Warner Communications and United Airlines to name a few), but he is mostly celebrated for the way in which he redefined the art of the movie title sequence and poster to create a complete identity for films.

In the early 1950s, Bass saw the potential for the opening credits to play a bigger part in setting the atmosphere of a film than previously realised. Otto Preminger was the first director to take advantage of Bass’s unique illustrative style, creating poster and titles for Carmen Jones in 1954. It was for his next sequence (The Man with the Golden Arm, 1955) that the rest of Hollywood sat up and took notice.

His animated sequences became a big hit and Bass went on to work with film greats such as Hitchcock, Kubrick and Scorsese, receiving an Oscar in 1968 for his own short film How Man Creates.

Out of the many brilliant movie title sequences that Saul Bass produced, I think my favourite has to be the haunting design for Psycho (1960). The sweeping lines, jagged movement of the text and frenetic staccato music, stunningly combine to create a thrilling preface of what’s to follow.

You can watch the title sequence here

Regarding his theories on the use of film titles, Bass said “My initial thoughts about what a title can do was to set mood and the prime underlying core of the film’s story, to express the story in some metaphorical way. I saw the title as a way of conditioning the audience, so that when the film actually began, viewers would already have an emotional resonance with it”.

Although being a great admirer of his film title sequences, what I find most inspiring about Bass are his beautifully illustrated posters, his distinctive style used time and time again to great success. The key to his designs is that they always illustrate one simple idea.

Bass had an uncompromising philosophy when it came to design, “The fact of the matter is, I want everything we do, that I do personally, that our office does, to be beautiful. I don’t give a damn whether the client understands that that’s worth anything, or that the client thinks it’s worth anything, or whether it is worth anything. It’s worth it to me. It’s the way I want to live my life. I want to make beautiful things, even if nobody cares.”

Saul Bass died in 1996. His legacy and influence that he had on designers can still be seen today. From the CD artwork for The White Stripes’ Hardest Button to Button, to the opening credits of Catch Me if You Can (2002).

Another of our Creative Heroes, John Webster