Great job! It just amazes me how the folks on this site can create DVD covers 10 times better than those soulless vultures at Universal.

This is Awesome... they shoulda got you to do the actual one...

Only one complaint, I've never been a big fan of reviews on the covers... ruins the cover for me

And I think there might need to be something near the top... a little empty. But hey, what do I know.

I love it though... I may well print it out and use it instead of the actual one ;)

Where'd ya get River's arm from? Isn't it supposed to be holdin' a gun??? ;p

Ooooh! This is one of the best cover arts I've seen. You didn't make the back too busy... which is something most do. I like the blocking of the pics and such.

Bravo!

-Blake

Very cool! I saw the cover earlier on the official boards, but the front and back together looks so professional. The back is much better done than mine (I couldn't decide which pics to include, so I included too many). I don't know how I'm going to pick which fanart cover to print off - I'm so indecisive. One for each month, maybe - yours in January, Shojoholic's in Feb, etc. I'm gonna run out of printer ink doing this! :)

Awesome... Any chance of a high-res version without the reviews? I'm so gonna switch them out when i get mine... lol, all my friends'll be like "where'd you get that copy?"

wow, i might need to get a high res version and find someone to print it for me, thats hott

11th, you rock my gorram socks off! The actual DVD cover design compositing is a pure stroke of genius in EVERY sense of the word! The right colours, the right designs, the right characters... and the top half of the Reaver ships and Miranda... it took my breath away!

I wasn't one to complain about the UIP DVD cover, but I would drop it in a second to get this one! :D

One thing, though, is that not many DVDs place such huge pictures on the back cover. If anything, the pictures are minimal at best, becuase the real good images are the ones on the cover, the ones that first hooked a buyer. The back cover is mianly for the purpose of information: clear, legible text detailing the story, legible text for the features and other info. You have that all here, but the smaller photos make for a more cluttery back cover.

Just a thought.

Otherwise, you're a frikkin' genius. Hurrah to a fellow "Designers, Ahoy!" crewmember on the Broancoats forum!

-DeviDarkWolf

that pic of the operative, river (unfortunately minus hardware) and our brilliant captain just makes me go "ooh!" love it!

b

Whoa, AMAZING work 11thHour!
Can you post a high-res version so we can print it? Many thanks! Love your work!

orcblaster

the front cover is amazing. although it's not what I had pictured myself, it still looks awesome. I like it better than the official one (even though I'm one of the few people who doesn't mind it too much).

if I may make a few suggestions though... I agree with Tensen01 that the top is a bit empty. I think that the reviews should stay there, so to balance it out, you could put "a Joss Whedon film" up at the top. after all, on the Firefly box set, it say "Joss Whedon's" with the title underneath. just a thought.

I'm not crazy about the back, but then again, that's usually the case for most DVDs with me. the choice of pictures is good, and so is the font. I just never liked the whole "picture boxes piled up" look. perhaps it would look better as a feathered montage or a combination of the two (i.e. have the Reaver/Alliance image bleed to the edge of the cover and fade out and have the other images still in boxes). or eve just simply have parts of each of the boxed images stick out of their frames like you did one the cover (Operative's shoulder, Miranda, etc.)

anyway, these are just my thoughts and some constructive criticism. as a fellow designer, I know that you probably don't want to change your art once you deem it complete. whatever you decide to do, I'd still love to get a high-res version to use if it's possible :)

DeviDarkWolf, you mentioned the UIP DVD cover. I haven't seen it, where is it?

Thanks to everyone for the praise and the great feedback. I appreciate the suggestions for the design... after all, the goal of this exercise is to create a cover that will appeal to as many potential fans as possible, so it's good to get such thoughtful respones.

DeviDarkWolf:

Wow, I'm bowled over with such shiny praise... thanks ever so. Regarding the photos on the back thing... yes, you're right, the backs of DVDs usually have little pics squeezed in between lots and lots of info. The thing is, those little pics always bug me! Sometimes a person who gets intrigued by the front cover, will get finally convinced on buying the DVD if the back "closes the deal". I wanted to put pics on the back that showed a nice range of emotions and "looks" in the movie. But still find a way to incorporate the text and disc info without everything becoming a jumble. There is a lot going on in the back cover, but I think it accomplishes what I set out to do. Of course, that doesn't mean I won't tweak the heck out of it if I get a better idea!

I'm really glad the art conveys the right feeling of Serenity for you. That was definitely my goal and it means a lot when fellow fans feel that it works. That's the acid test!

luckyspencer7:

Thanks for the feedback too. The design is a reworking of an unused early mock-up for the cover of the Serenity RPG book. I liked the idea of finding a use for it... instead of the art just languising on my hard drive. If I'd started out from total scratch, then the cover art would look very different.

I appreciate your well thought out feedback. I can tell you work with graphics too, or at least have an eye for it, so your comments are welcome. Some of them were actually ideas that I had been considering before, so it was interesting to see that you thought of them too. So maybe a good reason to give them a whirl? I've revised the design and posted it anew today.

Everyone else, thanks so much for your posts. I've probably been pouring lots more time into this little project than I should. But sharing it, and seeing that so many are enjoying the art makes it all worthwhile.

Yer Art Companion,

11th Hour

Wow very nice work. Great choices for the imagery you obviously spent quite a bit of time on this and the end result is fantastic. I especially liked the "River pointing at Miranda" the way you modified it looks very natural and yet dramatic at the same time. I am an artist as well (more of the pencil or pen than digital)and have always been a fan of your work the attention to detail in your peices is wonderful.
There are a few things i would note with River's finger i would make it so it is juxtaposed further over the planet or make a definite gap between planet surface and finger because as it is now she appears to be doing the spin the basketball on one finger thing with the plantet. Also concur that the top of the front cover looks a bit empty but i think moving the reviews up a bit would fix that. I know some think they detract from the image and i see that side of it however they do make it look more "official" so i would keep them in. Another thing unless it is meant as a form of foreshadowing i would reverse Serenity (the ship not text) so it is pointing up not down. goes more with the "we'll rise again" and "still flying" themes to my mind rather than the way it is now... looks like it's about to crash... into Mal's head no less (his brains are in terrible danger!) so unless you specifically were trying for that "hint of a crash to come" i would suggest turning it around. The way the orange/yellow flash behind the text of Serenity looks is fine when it is spread open but i think when it is closed and you are looking at the spine it would look somewhat disembodied and out of place. If you picture it wrapped around a DVD you'll see what i mean. I also notice the Operatives right pupil is smaller than his left one and especialy compared to how large Mal's and River's are. It is almost as if he is somewhere else with a bright light shining in his eyes and they are in a darker lit room or looking at the night sky... it makes him look out of sync with the rest of the image. Mal being "lit" and river lit from above works really well i feel for the mood of the cover the operative just seems to not fit. Perhaps that is the effect you wanted not sure but thought i'd mention the eye thing incase it had gone unnoticed.
One final bit, and this is really only a preference thing, but if i were choosing a dramatic face for River i think i'd have gone with one of the scenes where she is frozen in the hologram... where the operative looks at her and says "where are you hiding little girl" i'd keep this same pose and finger pointing but just that look on her face with the stray wisps of hair across her face had more punch to me.
These of course are merely suggestions and not meant to be critcism of your shiny work. I fourth the motion for a higher rez image as i'd gladly swap this with the default image for my DVD jacket in a heartbeat. :)
You are awesome, Keep flying (and creating)
Fellow Artist(but not a Companion:)Christopher Robin

Correction; i wanted to say Mal being "lit from below and River being "lit from above... I missed a few words though, it's late and this was a long post heh. Anywho that part makes a great contrast i feel the opposite lighting on them.
Christopher Robin

Now I'm waiting for the DVD just so I have something to display this shiny cover on...

It's beautiful! I gotta take lessons from you. :)

Carla
{soccer videos in progress - *sigh*}