The project was to create an original book cover jacket design for a hardcover book. Instead of redesigning an existing book cover, I had to choose a film and imagine that this cover is for the original, written manuscript of the book version of the film. The goal was to summarize a complex story into a single theme and create a unique book cover that would stand out on a shelf among other books.

I chose the film "Ocean’s Eleven" written by Ted Griffin. I summarized the theme as many extremely different, conflicting personalities coming together to pull off an impossible challenge. The story takes place in the casinos of Las Vegas; I specifically chose items (such as a glass of whiskey and a gold lighter) that represented the different personalities from this setting. Each of these personalities are unique and distinct, yet they work together to create strong casino imagery. I found these items, arranged them on a poker table, photographed them, and created the lettering for the spine and author. I used these distinctive items and the entire layout to evoke the overall casino vibe. The final product required many rounds of adjusting the items in the layout and photographs.

The resulting project was very successful. When presented to my professor and peers, they were immediately able to understand that the unique items on the cover created strong imagery alluding to a casino. The many items were recognizable as distinct objects and personalities, but they worked together to create imagery that related to the film and its plot.