Comments on: Children of Men

By: GK

GK — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 00:55:46 +0000

Beautifully functional, but I thought those were supposed to be government computers. Where’s the Solitaire/Minesweeper? =O)

By: Coleran

Coleran — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 07:45:36 +0000

Thanks Julius

By: Julian

Julian — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 02:24:33 +0000

Nice to see “David Gilmour”! i never paid for attention before love your work.
I think the user interfaces will be very pure in the future, and the vocal commands will let the interfaces more empty, without button, and i think the sobriety of the interfaces in the future is questionable, but it might be because of the tendances of the moment or what the computers are used for. in a police center, in my mind, it might to be plain, but for a teen, i imagine it very colorful and active. (excuse my english, i’m french speaker)
love your work (ever said?)

By: Mark Coleran: Fantasy and Real UI Designer | TITLEOFMAGAZINE

Mark Coleran: Fantasy and Real UI Designer | TITLEOFMAGAZINE — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 02:57:11 +0000

[...] denied screens, but Coleran’s work is eye catching, understandable and even clever. In an unused interface for Children of Men, a “coverflow” view like iTunes is shown. Before iTunes even introduced [...]

By: Coleran

Coleran — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 19:37:00 +0000

It is actually Bumptop in the background. It was a rough layout for a music player that was going to appear in the movie and I got permission to use it as a background. As a note, the integrated Coverflow usage, integrated into the player, was about 6 months before iTunes incorporated the same. The screen itself was never fully finished and did not get used.

By: Werthog

Werthog — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 17:57:30 +0000

I find it amusing that even the guy who designed this mockup says it would “most certainly not” ever be a real UI… And yet somebody went and made it anyway. http://bumptop.com/

By: Coleran

Coleran — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 21:18:47 +0000

Hi Matthew

There is sometimes a huge gap between realism and it’s possible use and what we throw into the films. Yes, it is a little toy chest at times but in the end there are just a few factors that decide what you do.

Story is paramount, does it tell the small part of the story it is supposed to?

Is it visually interesting and appropriate? Does it look good, appropriate for the context it is in.

The later drives much of those things, included in something like the Children of Men screens. At a glance it is supposed to be something different from what we have and use everyday, yet keep a few small design cues that make it inherently recognizable as an interface. It can be a hard thing to balance. Whether it would ever be a real UI, most certainly not. Usability is not high on the list of requirements for the screens in films.

By: Matthew

Matthew — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:54:15 +0000

Followed your work for awhile (both in the theater and elsewhere!). I shared your URL when you had the reel up.

Anyway, the second image on this — I know I’ve seen that demoed before but I can’t remember where. Isn’t it like all the little cards represent files, and you can stack them, throw them around and they bounce around off the wall? I remember thinking, wow that’s cool I’m really glad people are approaching UI in an interesting way; But I’m sure it would be just horrific to use. It’s the toy chest model of UI, and toy chests are about the least organized thing in the world.

I don’t suppose you can say about what your next film/project is?

By: Coleran

Coleran — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:52:13 +0000

Thanks AK

By: AK

AK — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:59:22 +0000

Really love the Ministry of Energy desktop – looks genuinely functional, and the ‘clouds’ of other users (presumably co-workers) seems like a good idea; instant messaging integrated into the workspace. Incredible film, and some excellent visual design work.