Interview by: Jarrett Kertesz

After graduating from Otis College of Art and Design with a degree in Fine Arts, Fernando Ramirez decided to focus his attention on the interactive medium. Since 1995, he has slowly been building a substantial portfolio of work, which has just recently begun to show what he can really do. Taking narrative concepts to the web is no easy feat and in this interview, Fernando talks about his work for the Royal Tenenbaums and Enemy at the Gates websites.

With the website you art directed through 65 Media for the film, the Royal Tenenbaums, you’ve really managed to capture the mood of the film. Was there a lot of deliberation about what the site should feel like or encompass conceptually before you started?

Based on past Wes Anderson films I knew the website would have to be unconventional yet not so abstract and uninviting that the viewer wouldn’t be able to warm up to the characters. The end result was making the website character driven while using the father Royal as the main navigation. Royal, in the film, is looking to get back into his wife and children’s lives, so I put him in a window like graphic that appears on each of the character’s individual sections. Each characters personality is brought to life through their sections own personal design. I knew that if I could capture the uniqueness of each character and how the family functioned that I wouldn’t misrepresent the idea of film.

Do you feel that the costumes, sets and cultural references of the movie played a big part in your design direction?

Yes, definitely. The costume design and the look of the film are so prominent it automatically steers the direction. The personality of each character can be seen in the clothes they wear and the set design describes the family history.

Was your choice of having individual typefaces for each section title based on what you felt best matched the featured character’s personality or were you just trying to keep with the austerity and dark humor of the film?

Type is very descriptive. I just wanted to match the look and personality of each page.

Do you feel that your experiments and illustrations are a launch pad for concepts that you may want to pursue in your commercial work? I’m thinking specifically of the illustrations you did for the Royal Tenenbaums?

It just made sense for the loaders to be illustration’s for the Royal Tenenbaum website, they were key in creating the mood. My experiments and drawings are really only for me, I never think about commercial work when I’m doing my personal work. It’s always about trying to get an idea across. I can only hope that my personal work helps to match my sensibility with the right type of commercial work.

You’ve blended heroic Communist propaganda imagery into your design for Enemy at the Gates. Was this a logical choice for you? What did you do to bring it up to date?

I’m a huge fan of the Stenberg brothers, and Enemy at the Gates is about creating heroes through propaganda and the uplifting power it has on people. The movie gave me the opportunity to approach the website with the same type of graphic story telling style the Stenberg Brothers practiced with movie posters. I don’t think you can do anything to improve on that look, it’s so masterful.

Do you think that your initial comps for Enemy at the Gates would have better served the site and if so, how?

The look and feel of actual site didn’t change that much from the initial comps. It was only how some of the information was displayed that changed. I think the website would have been able to hold more information without looking so cluttered.

After doing quite a few movie sites, what would you like to work on now and why?

I am always looking for work that, is interested in taking a different approach; be it movie sites, music, fashion, short films, illustrations, etc. It’s really about strong ideas and interesting projects for me.

Thanks Fernando+

Thank you.

Enemy at the Gates
Burning Small Fires