At Night tells the story of an 18 year old girl who uses her activist graffiti art as a form of protest against a fascist government, and is set in New York of the near, dystopian future. Coming from a privileged, liberal family, the protagonist feels inclined to address issues of poverty, inequality and discrimination that result from a newly established, oppressive regime. The plot is inspired by the story of Krishna and Radha, who share a forbidden relationship that can only exist in secrecy, hence only being allowed to meet at night, similarly to the relationship that the main character has with her art. When the truth is finally revealed, the protagonist decides to sacrifice her freedom for the sake of raising awareness of the oppressive regime. The title reflects the secretive and intimate setting and nature of the relationship between the artist and her art, implying a sense of mystery.
Closing Scene – Main Character Final Monologue.
“I am not losing any freedom at this point. I did not have much of it in the first place.I do not feel free when I see people have nothing because it was taken away from them. I do not feel entitled to live in prosperity when they have nothing. I do not feel free if the only wayI can speak my mind is using a spray can and a wall when no one is looking. A prison cell is just a materialization of the cage we are all forced to live in anyway.
Protagonist appears talking to the judge, presumably confessing guilt.
My art was a way to live inside the cage. The only way I could do it was in secrecy. But if I can only do it in secrecy, I am conforming to what they want me to feel. If I do it in secrecy, I am still scared of what they will do to me.
The judge re-enters the courtroom, everyone stands up, the judge presumably is announcing the verdict. Protests outside continue.
If I do it in secrecy, I am giving a voice to others… But I am still staying silent. I am still being scared. As long as I can only do it at night, I am better off in a prison cell. I can do more good that way.
The courtroom doors open, revealing the protagonist being walked out by prison guides, with her head up, emanating a sense of pride.
At least it’s out in the open. In the light of the day.”
Version 1 – Color
Version 2 – Black and White
Version 3 – Black and White with Red Accents
Our final three choices all have the same layout. The slogan in the upper part of the poster is in fact a line from the final scene of the script, explaining the protagonist’s intention and serving as an attention grabber. The title can be found in the lower right corner; when taking the pictures, we considered possible layout options and made sure to leave space within the photograph for text. The central part of the poster is a photo we have taken in front of a large wall on Houston Street we found when walking around the area; we found that the texture of the wallpaper reflected the utopian mood and served well as a backdrop for the graffiti artwork we had designed in photoshop. The strong directional lighting coming from above illuminated the figure in a dramatic way, emphasizing the effect, and the large size of the wall allowed us to zoom out relatively far, conveying a sense of larger space, to emphasize the isolation of the individual in solitude with their art.
The figure’s outfit – jeans, converse sneakers and a hoodie – refers to the character’s nonchalance, and she is facing her finished piece, contemplating over it in solitude. The graffiti depicts fists raised in the air, as a symbol of protest, emerging from a multiplied composition of Statues of Liberty, which relates to the power of the crowd, while also alluding to boycotting the regime and, similarly to the birds flying around, symbolizing freedom.
The alterations made to create the three versions of our poster related to the use of color. The first poster uses the natural color of the photograph, which, due to its limited, desaturated palette, created a gloomy and dystopian mood. The second version is executed entirely in black and white, perhaps creating an atmosphere suggesting a horror movie rather than a political drama with elements of thriller. The third version also utilizes black and white, adding red as accent color to place emphasis on the artwork and the graffiti, relating to oppression, violence and protest.
Poster Outtakes: While creating the layout for the poster, we looked online for some underground-looking fonts, and decided on a simple sans serif font that resembles stenciled text, adding a modern look and connecting well to the idea of graffiti. Additionally, the transparent lettering with opaque frame was the perfect solution to assure that the text is legible against the textured background of the photograph. We took photographs against various backgrounds, some also with flash, to see what effects we could achieve through lighting, but in the end decided on a more atmospheric light which relates to the mood of the film.
In executing our project as a group, we decided to all be present and contribute throughout all of our conceptual and creative processes, allowing for more efficiency and coherence in the work.
