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Among the more memorable title shots by Bass was an ingenious recognition in the credits listing with regard to his direction of the filming of
cacophony of text and graphic fills that introduced Alfred Hitchcock’s the terrifying murder in the shower. Although the entire scope of his role in
North by Northwest in 1959. That same year, when Preminger’s Anatomy the filming remained a topic of dispute decades afterward, indisputable was
of a Murder appeared, the Bass-produced title sequence hit hard, with a the notion that the scene became an established classic of horror film hysteria
cartoon-like silhouette of a segmented human body. and mesmerized generations of movie viewers. That same year, in 1960, Bass
assisted Stanley Kubrick in filming the final battle in Spartacus. Later, in 1966,
After a decade of honing his vocation, Bass’s life and career quickened Bass was largely responsible for the filming of the car racing scenes in John
in the late 1950s, when he met and hired Elaine Makatura, an artist Frankenheimer’s Grand Prix. Bass used the opportunity to bring the audience
and composer. Over the course of several years the two developed an to reflect on the race from the first person point of view of the drivers.
intimate professional relationship, a collaborative effort that endured
for over 40 years. As the 1950s merged into the 1960s, Saul Bass and Bass, as might seem inevitable, went on to direct complete films, mostly of
Associates developed title designs for over one dozen films, while critics the genre known as “shorts.” In his first such foray in 1962 he produced a film
rained relentless praise on his creative output. called Apples and Oranges. Six years and five productions later, Bass won
an Academy Award for his 1968 short, Why Man Creates. Two others of his
Bass, with his distinctive touch of emotion, created an unsettling display films received Academy Award nominations in 1977 and 1979 respectively.
of parallel lines ad infinitum, which served to crank up the audience In all, Bass and Makatura introduced a steady output of film shorts to the
tension in the opening moments of a 1960 Hitchcock production, a international film festivals throughout the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, and for much
classic horror thriller, called Psycho. The following year brought the of the 1990s. They directed a feature length science fiction film in 1973, called
acclaimed musical drama West Side Story. With deceiving simplicity, the Phase IV.
story unraveled to a disturbing climax. It was at the end of the film that
Bass seized the moment of listing the credits in graffiti, to mesmerize and Four for Scorsese
calm the audience from the impact of the story. In 1962, Bass conceived
another major mini-hit and film-land classic in presenting the skillfully Bass developed title cuts for four of Martin Scorsese’s films: Good Fellas in
orchestrated cat fight that consumes the brief preliminary moments of the 1990, the ominous Cape Fear in 1991, The Age of Innocence in 1993, and
title sequence of Edward Dmytryk’s story of urban vice, called Walk on Casino in 1995, which was Bass’s final movie title completed before his death.
the Wild Side. In the 1964 title sequence for The Victors, Bass grabbed The Casino opener depicts an explosive reverie, wherein actor Robert De Niro
the viewer with a montage of historical images - with the final image transcends earth and symbolically dives into hell. With the surreal imagery
shifting from the potpourri of the montage to become the first scene of Bass created an atmosphere of unscrupulous depravity and greed, intended
the film proper. to characterize the aura of Las Vegas that reveals itself as the movie unfolds.
Bass movie title art established clearly and succinctly the theme and emotional
Direction of Shorts premise of each film, and it became clear to film promoters that audiences
appreciated the underlying appeal to their sophistication.
Seemingly limitless in creativity, Bass found expression in short film
sequences beyond the movie openers, closing credits, and advertising More Than a Film Career
logos that brought him to prominence. His mastery of the understated
film short led film directors to consult him in the filming of climacteric Bass and his design firm, which was renamed Saul Bass/Herb Yager and
moments in movies. In that regard, his input to Alfred Hitchcock’s Associates in 1978, earned honors and distinction beyond the film industry, for
Psycho was among the most reverberating and dramatic. Bass received a variety of corporate designs and promotional campaigns. Major corporations

Course Title: Motion Graphics Project: The Volvo Ocean Race Student: Janet McPhatter Instructor: Prof. Russell Brown Term: May 2011